Drunk Driving Overhaul

I’m sure everyone has their opinion on the perfect way to spend your Columbus Day. Some people hit up parades and rallies in support of Columbus and what he did. Others go out in protest against the way our society praises him for what he did. Others have to go to work knowing they’re missing out on a free day of fun, however you decide to generate that fun. The one thing we can probably all agree on is that a poor choice for your Columbus Day would be rear-ending the chief of the Massachusetts State Police at a red light at 11:45am … while driving drunk … for the 5th documented time.
http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/10/12/driver_faces_oui_charge_after_hitting_cruiser/
This is now her 5th DUI charge. 5th!! They already suspended her license and probably have collected a pretty good pile of money in fees from her. If this was an isolated case I’d brush it off as just a random moron. No matter what you do, there’s always a moron that just refuses to obey the laws. However, this is far from an isolated case. You often see reports of people getting caught for driving drunk with previous DUIs. I don’t have any hard numbers, but it’s pretty common. This to me says the system is just not working. The punishment is clearly not serious enough to serve as a legitimate deterrent. And the potential effects of the crime are severe. If drunks would confine themselves to single-car crashes I wouldn’t really mind. Even if they had a passenger. If you get hammered, decide to drive your car, and wrap it around an oak tree and kill yourself, that’s none of my concern. If someone was foolish enough to get in the car with you while you were in that condition, that’s also none of my concern. The affected parties did something stupid and paid a price for it. However, that is not always the case. Drunks usually take an innocent person out with them when they go. I’m not saying that drunk drivers usually kill a person every time they drive. That’s stupid. I’m saying that when they do wreck their car while driving drunk, they rarely go solo.
Unless someone can think of a way to keep drunks from killing innocent people, we need to find a way to keep people from driving drunk. And find a way that actually works. I think Mark and I came up with a pretty good solution today. First step is really just taking the current penalties and harshening them up. After you first DUI, you lose your license for a year. After your second, you lose it for good. But now is where it gets fun, and where Mark and I diverge. Clearly just suspending a person’s license isn’t sufficient. The woman that triggered this story was driving on a suspend license. And you’re dealing with people who have no concern for the DUI law, so why would they care about the license laws?
Mark’s solution is for every time you get caught after your 2nd DUI you lose a finger. Feel free to keep doing it if you want; you’ll just want to have a good priority list so you know how many, and which ones, you can afford to lose. Eventually people will either lose too many fingers to keep driving or they’ll finally get down to the fingers they can’t afford to lose.
I’m okay with going the non-mutilation route. If you get caught driving on a suspended license, whatever car you were driving, and everything in it, is now the property of the state and will be sold at auction. Assuming of course that the car wasn’t stolen. But before your buddy tries to claim it stolen before you get busted, know that you’ll then be charged with grand theft auto and will be facing some additional prison time. The prison time for the DUI offense will go up exponentially every time you’re caught. 3rd time, 2 years; 4th time, 4 years; 5th time, 8 years. Etc, etc, etc. And if we can find a way to sneak an extra clause into the law, the cops each get to take 1 shot at you when they pull you over starting with offense #3. Anywhere except the head, and with anything they normally carry with them. The no-headshot part pretty much rules out pistol whipping, but taking a baton to the ribs ain’t no picnic. Butt of the gun to a kneecap? That stings a bit. Or just a good old fashioned kick to the gut. But I doubt there’s any legal way to get that in there. And since I’m not a total monster, the state would offer discounted home breathalyzers for a short time after the change was announced. That way everyone could just keep one in their car and check real fast before they drove off. It also removes the argument that people had no idea they were over the limit of 0.08%.
This solution fixes so many problems. First and foremost, I have to believe this would put a sizable dent in the number of people driving drunk. But it also would generate extra revenue when the state gets to sell off a bunch of cars full of stuff. Think of all the bonus goodies that are common in cars. After-market stereo equipment, GPS units, CDs, iPods, laptops, cell phones. Everything in the car becomes the state’s and gets sold for profit. Genius! I think we all should start lobbying our politicians now to get this reform put in place. The Chauncey Michaels Statutes are the new future!!

Camping 2008 Part 2

Sorry for the delay. Seems even when I'm just copying and pasting someone else's work I still can't update this in a timely manner. Oh well, here's the 2nd installment of the '08 journal.


9-1-08. Monday.
To celebrate Labor Day, we had hot cocoa and pancakes for breakfast. It is so much faster when using the stove and the first cakes don’t turn out with a black hide on them. It was so warm that we slept with both ends of the tent open last night. With the new angle of the tent, the sun sets out the back and rises in the front. Now that is a dream house. I had a very restless night sleeping on the uneven ground. Getting enough restful sleep is a real trick.

The sun was hot but it was tolerable once we got in the wind. There were whitecaps all day, so that worked well for us. Alpha was the first stop of the trip. There was a new law that did not allow leaches and all hooks had to be barbless. Bending the existing barbs was allowed. Leaches were always the sure fire thing for all these years, so we were feeling very anxious without them. We brought a wide variety of Berkley Gulp to have scent on the hook and hoped for the best.

We got a few Walleye and smallies but not the fast action we looked forward to for the last 50 weeks. I did get a 19” smallie and Jarod got a 28” walleye. The slow action was the same on Beta and the south point to Fillet Island. Jarod hooked a sinker to his Rapala Fat Rap and worked it on the bottom. It did as well as jigging at several times. Adapt and survive. Later in the day Jarod also got a 28” pike.

We noticed right away that we were loosing hookups. This never happened in previous years. As much as we told ourselves that it wasn’t the barbless hooks, by the time the trip was over, we were sure of it. Even thought the TV commercials would never lie, we saw right away that the Gulp was no match for live leaches. We never did get into action as fast as previous years. If these two new rules were to slow down the fish catching, it was a big success.

In the morning one canoe came from the Wawiag and crossed over into McVicor bay. In the afternoon a canoe came from the south and crossed into a camp north of us. It may have been the same canoe. We had lunch on the cliff but moved into the shade rather than sit out in the sun. Without the wind, it was way too hot to enjoy sunbathing today. We came in early to cool off and planned on going out after supper when the sun and wind settled down. I washed my head, took a standing bath, and then just sat with my feet in the water to get my core temperature down where I felt comfortable.

A gull found our entrails and would follow us for the rest of the week. Alpha gave us nothing at sunset even though we threw stick baits, jigs, spoons, and anything else we had. We have never done well fishing on Alpha at sunset but we also never regretted trying. This night we stayed out late and watched the Milky Way from the middle of the lake. What a great experience.

One of the other new items we brought this year were LED headlamps. Jarod had high and low beam, I had white and red light. We laughed that his high beam was so bright we could almost see shore. The lights sure made it easy to get the canoe in after dark and we would use them around camp every night and in the tent. Hard to beat hands free light. We smoked cigars and went to bed about 10:30 PM. Both of us were very tired from fighting the sun and wind all day.

9-2-09. Tuesday.
The south wind blew all night and again today. This was the 3rd day like that but at least today was solid overcast. Hopefully it will be better fishing without the sun. While we ate breakfast, the canoe from the north camp settled on Alpha and stayed all morning. They must have known about it before they saw us on it yesterday.

We started on Beta but again didn’t do well so we moved to Filet south point where things were better. The constant wind blew in rain which started as a slow drizzle, then built to rain, and finally turned into a heavy downpour. The fishing was good, so we sat tight while the canoe began to fill up with rain water and things started to float inside the canoe. It poured so hard we couldn’t see shore for awhile. After about an hour it stopped and the canoe on Alpha was gone. Wimps. Several years ago we found Alpha in the rain; didn’t they know rain was good?

We fished a little while longer and then decided to have lunch at camp. Any shore lunch spots would be soaked which would require us to eat lunch in our rain suits. After sitting in the rain suits for the last few hours, we looked forward to getting out of them. Our camp was flooded but inside the tent was nice and dry. That was another new thing this year; a new ground cloth for inside the tent.

We took our time in camp and got a late start hoping the wind would go down; it didn’t. Alpha gave up fish for supper and we saw 2 gulls fight for the entrails. We hadn’t seen that in years. By the end of the day the wind shifted from the NW and cooler air was coming in. It cleared up enough for us to watch the stars for a short while before they were covered by clouds again.

By the time we went to bed, I was sleeping in my long johns with the tent flaps zipped up and I was inside the sleeping bag. Now that is more like it. Jarod woke me up at 4 AM concerned that the canoe needed to be tied down because the wind sounded awfully noisy in the trees. We got up, with our headlamps on, and satisfied ourselves that it didn’t need to be tied down. It was safely tucked into rocks and a tree, but it was better to be safe and check it out anyway. It started to rain again after we returned to the tent. It felt good to be inside and dry, out of the wind and water. All there was to do was sleep so we got busy doing it.

9-3-09. Wednesday.
We both slept about an hour later than usual and got up at 7 AM to a very wet campsite. Yesterday morning was warm, dry, and we were glad for overcast. Today was 60 degrees, wet, and we were hoping the clouds would go away. The heavy overcast slowly changed and by midmorning the sun came out and it was a beautiful day.

I was actually glad to have to put on a wool T-shirt, shirt, fleece jacket, wind breaker, long johns, and mittens. The wood was nice and dry under the tarp and a hot wood fire sure felt good on this cool morning. Our traditional roles were for Jarod to fix and care for the fire and for me to prepare and cook the food and wash the dishes. Today I noticed that Jarod was getting the food out of the packs, doing some mixing, and caring for the food while it was on the fire. If he saw it needed being done, he just did it. In all the years of camping, this was the first time he had done that. I could tell that being the cook at home had conditioned him to do those things out here. Once I was aware of it, I leaned back and thought how proud I was of him.

We stayed layered up all morning as we sat on Alpha and Beta in the north wind. The fishing was slow although we did catch several fish. Jarod got a 33” pike and I got a big walleye on Alpha. Jarod had several hook sets that were lost before he could get them to the canoe. I got bit off once and broke off the white helicopter jig. Wally caught a nice pike which when filleted for lunch, had a 10” smallie inside its stomach. We saw one canoe heading east and one canoe in the north bay.

Today was a perfect day for lunch on the cliff. It afforded us to get out of the constant wind and strip down to only two layers of clothes while we sat in the sun. We saw an eagle sitting on gull rock and earlier during breakfast another was in one of the tall trees above camp. They never did take the entrails while we were on the cliff. Even on Fillet Island, we had to be out of site before the eagles would come down to the ground.

Being out of the wind was nice so we fished the west bay next to gull rock. I paddled slowly as Jarod cast a spoon for pike as we did a slow counter clockwise circle around the bay. He had a few strikes and did catch a very nice pike. It was very enjoyable to just watch him cast knowing that every cast could be a fish. We were in no hurry, so we just savored the moment of working together in the canoe on such a perfect spot of the universe.

After supper, we cast from camp shore in the dead calm water. Once again Jarod caught something with his homemade perch topwater. That thing is a fish catching machine. I gave up on the jitterbug this year and bought a new Rapala Skitter Pop. On one of my casts, I stopped reeling about half way in and I saw a pike do a slow roll out of the water to swallow it. It is so exciting when the fish come out of the water to hit a topwater.

As we sat smoking our cigars, we noticed a thin line of white clouds directly to the north. It took a few minutes for us to realize that it was dark and we couldn’t see white clouds. This was the northern lights! Right on the horizon, one white spot appeared, then a couple more, until a continuous line was formed. Then they started to swirl and grow taller, then fall, then start over again. We sat speechless as we watched something that appeared so spectacular that it must be man made but we knew it was all natural.

Slowly the entire sky to the north lit up with a white, illuminating haze. The sky and lake to the left of us was black while the sky and lake to the right of us were bright white. Every 5 minutes something else developed that we had never seen before. Then the haze developed into several bands that stretched over us from the east horizon to the west horizon. Under them to the north were bands of northern lights. It was like watching a screen saver in slow motion as it kept morphing into different designs.

It was still going on when we went to bed an hour later. When I got up to pee about 1 AM, it was still dead calm with light spots in the north and a heavy white haze all around the sky.

9-4-08. Thursday.
This is the day that signals we are half way through the trip. It was only 45 degrees this morning as I loaded up with all the layers that I had before climbing out of the tent. Now we were camping! The heavy dew deposited tiny water drops on everything in sight. A solid overcast sky prevented the sun from burning off the fog which was rolling across to the west. There were dozens of thin white spikes of fog all the same height which gave the illusion of an army of fog soldiers slowly marching across the water. As the fog began to lift, a family of 12 mergansers left the rocks just north of camp and swam off across the open water to the east.

Our buddies were sitting on Alpha again so we decided to return the favor and fish by their campsite. We went to the rock pile that is in the middle of the north channel of the bay that leads to the Wawiag. Jigging 12 cranks deep, we got several walleye, pike, and small mouth. Jarod caught a pike with his big bucktail so it gets to come back next year.

Next we moved to Walleye Island. As we paddled past Alpha, our friends had moved up shallow close to the rock piles. The rest of the morning was spent catching walleye and smallies in the little bay behind Walleye Island. We had lunch on Suick Island at a little campsite on the very tip by the main channel. It was good to see that the whole island was full of 10-15 foot pine trees spaced about 4 feet apart. The branches were all touching each other which made it a small thick forest. Lunch was spent the usual way for a cool day; sitting in the sun, out of the breeze, watching the lake and the sky. In this case we had a great view of the SE end of Kawnipi and Suick Bay.

The afternoon was spent moving around Suick Bay catching dozens of pike and smallies. We started out in the deep main channel and slowly moved into the shallow back bay. The larger pike and small mouth were in the deeper channel water and the smaller pike were in the shallow weeds. I got a smallie on a Johnson minnow while trying to catch pike. Jarod did well with his homemade perch bait, as always. We laughed as a pike jumped completely out of the water trying to hit his bait. A little while later he pulled off a fishing first and had a hooked pike jump into the canoe. He reeled the fish in next to canoe when it made a predicted run. The water exploded, the pole bent, we heard the metal sound of the lure hitting the leader, and the next thing we knew the fish came over the side and into the canoe. By the time the action had stopped, that fish must have flopped a hundred times and the entire midsection of the canoe was coated with pike slime.

Camping 2008 Part 1

Here we go, first few days of the camping journal. Nothing real exciting, but maybe that's the point. For us it is. Just a chill, relaxing trip into the woods. Oddly enough, this trip opens with probably our only competitive incident in a decade. I can only think of 2 times we've gotten into an unofficial race with a canoe. This was #2.

And to avoid confusion, "alpha" and "beta" refer to fishing spots and were spawned as jokes. We typically give our best spots nicknames so we can keep them straight. After finding alpha we went back and forth on names. After having most of mine rejected by Dad I jokingly said something about naming 'location alpha' and made some other Navy Seal joke. The name just kinda stuck. After that, beta was a pretty easy move. Yes, we get a bit strange after all that time in the woods. Might not come up in today's post, but I wanted it out there. I think I'll just do the travel days today and start next time with fishing/camping days.
Janice is the Quetico Park ranger who is almost always at the Cache Bay Station. She's only gone for 2 weeks when she gets her vacation.




A lot has happened since last year’s trip. Emily & Mike got married in October 2007, Emily and Mike bought a house in Arlington Heights, and Jarod and Hayley got married in July 2008. I felt privileged that Jarod was going to go camping with me before he even went on his own honeymoon.

9-29-08. Friday.
Jarod flew in at about 9:30 A.M. which gave us time to do some shopping. We bought a new metal gas bottle after going to several places. Last year our original plastic bottle started to leak after many years, so we replaced it with 2 new metal cans. That would give us enough fuel to cook breakfast with gas plus do our daily shore lunch. On cold days it was nice to have a fire in the morning to get warm, but if is warm or wet, using the gas sure sped up the process.

Emily got a new Boston terrier, Zinny, at the start of summer so that she could have it house broken before she went back to school in the fall. It is a high energy chewing machine and we looked after it all day. Needless to say, Zinny and Jarod got along well. We had everything packed and in the car before Mike and Emily came over for a pizza supper.

It has been very dry at home and I have been watering for several weeks. The park website said that there was no fire ban, but we never know what to expect when we actually set foot in the park.

8-30-08. Saturday.
We did the traditional up at 4 AM and on the road by 4:45 AM. The sky was clear all the way with the temperature in the 80’s. There was much more traffic than normal because Labor Day weekend was in full swing. Grand Marais was full of people as we just stopped for gas and kept on going to Clearwater. The help were all out working when we arrived at 3 PM, so we just went to BlackBear for supper a little early. It was good we did because the locals all started showing up between 4 and 5. When we got back to Clearwater, we checked in, got settled in the bunk house, and got the canoe. It was completely overgrown by wild raspberry bushes but in good shape. We noticed that the Clearwater people had been patching canoes on the back porch and left some Bondo. After Lynn gave us permission to use what was left, we mixed it up and put it on the front and back of our canoe to cover the exposed fabric. It worked very well and was dry before we put the canoe back on the car.

In the lodge we met a couple from just north of Louisville who were going to do a fly-in the next day. They had camped for years and now flew in and stayed in a cabin. No cold and wet camping for them anymore. It did sound nice. The night before entry is always an anxious time knowing that we were just sitting around killing time now but in a few hours we were going to have a huge amount of work to do. Everything in its own time and now all we could do was wait. It always seems like a treat to be in the bunk house. It has a solid roof, solid wood floors, windows, and indoor plumbing plus lots of room to walk around and a light switch. It started to get dark around 9 PM and so we got our pillows from the lodge and went to bed.

8-31-08. Sunday.
The night was dry and cool which made for good sleeping. I was already awake when the alarm rang at 5AM. Getting dressed we knew that this was the last time we would be so comfortable for quite a while. It was still dark as we walked to the lodge to use their milk with the cereal we brought with us. We left Clearwater by 6 AM and were at the landing by 6:45 in time for our 7AM pickup. We quickly loaded our gear into the tow boat and pushed off. The boat was newer than we were used to and even had a two way radio for the pilot. The radio was calling before we ever got more than 20 yards from the shore. When the pilot asked who we were, I knew what was up. We were on the wrong boat; this one was a Seagull boat and intended to take a different group. Our boat was just now coming into the bay. We circled around and unloaded all our gear just as a vehicle from Seagull came and unloaded a canoe and two people.

This was the first time anyone else had gone out the same time we had. They did not act gracious and let us get out first. They loaded their boat right next to ours with a sense of urgency that seemed they felt we were in their way. We got our gear loaded into the correct boat and left just seconds before they did. I felt very competitive at that point and found myself unhappy at the prospect that we got up in the dark, arrived at the landing 30 minutes before they did but yet they might leave first. My civilization ways hadn’t left me yet and for some reason it was important to be first.

We got to Hook Island and spent about 10 minutes talking to the pilot about good fishing spots and techniques he knew about on Kawnipi. I had to dig a hole and leave a present on the island before we started out for Janice. I knew that the other boat would be coming right behind us so we shouldn’t waist time, but our 3 packs were ready to just drop into the canoe as soon as they would pull into the bay. To our surprise, they didn’t pull into the bay but instead they stopped out in the opening, dropped their canoe into the water and loaded it from the tow boat. I was correct; they were deliberately trying to beat us to Janice. That hole was going to have to wait.

As we saw them start to paddle, it was our turn to just let them go first, or not. NOT. We jumped into our canoe and started after them. They were clearly trying to beat us and now it was an issue of honor. The west wind was picking up as they headed straight into it towards Janice. Although we were racing, I didn’t want to run them down in such an obvious fashion so I headed for the shoreline on the right. It was a longer course but we could get out of the wind and I knew that we could really fly on calm water.

Jarod knew what I was doing but expressed his belief that it wasn’t going to work. They were pulling away as we headed North rather than West. It was quite a dilemma to figure out the correct course. To just cut over and get into calmer water sooner, we would have to travel farther. To cut the angle and travel a shorter distance, we had to stay in the wind and intersect the shore farther up. I was determined to pay the distance price and work our way over sooner and get into the calm or else my plan had no advantage at all. By the time we were in the shelter of the shoreline, it seemed that we had managed to keep the distance between canoes about the same as when we started. Now we closed the gap and managed to get to the point entering Cache Bay in front of them. We were very careful to not make eye contact with them but they knew we were racing and we knew they were racing. I could see in my peripheral vision that once we got to the point their stroke count dropped and they knew they were beat.

It still was a couple miles in the wind to the ranger island and I always was wondering if they would try a last ditch effort and pass us. We kept paddling strong so as to not let them get any ideas of making a run for it. In the end, we were successful in getting to the dock first. It was a good feeling. These guys were not amateurs and we beat them.
Janice was on vacation for the week so we had a nice talk with Lisa. While we filled out the paperwork, the radio told Lisa that the forecast was for strong winds and the temperatures highs were going down to 50 later in the week. Yikes!

There was so much snow last winter and then so much spring rain that they had 50 year high water in the early summer. Only experienced people were allowed to go through the Falls Chain. First timers were not allowed to go through and had to change their trip plans. The water for us was only about two feet lower than the spring highs. The BWCA had a total fire ban but the Quetico had none although the fire danger was high.

The other canoe came in a short time after we did and they sat outside the ranger house while we finished with Lisa. I took the time to take advantage of the latrine behind the ranger cabin. It was long overdue and I knew that I couldn’t make it to Silver Falls without a stop. This way I got to sit on the throne of the victorious.

We pulled our canoe and gear over to the side of the Silver Falls portage and took time to rest. It is always fun to mix up the Gatorade, take 4 granola bars, and sit on the rocks right by the edge of the falls. It is the first time in the trip that getting wet or dirty doesn’t matter; we start to just do whatever feels right at the time. If we are tired, just sit on the dirty ground.

After about 20 minutes or so, we finished and walked back to our canoe. The other canoe was just coming into the portage as we were closing our pack. A couple minutes sooner and we would have hiked over the portage in front of them, but now we just stood there and watched them. They were very good and we were correct in thinking they were experienced. The first person got out, took a big pack, some gear, and started to portage. The other guy put the canoe on his shoulders while it was still in the water and he followed on the portage. No chance of passing them on their return trip, they were single portaging like us. That was the last time we ever saw them.

We had the wind at our backs all the way down Saganagons which really helped with our energy levels. It was hot and clear all day long; what a beautiful day. Jarod was so pleased with the BWJ pack I got him last year that he got me one this year. It did a really good job of getting the weight off my shoulders and onto my hips. Thanks son.

We mentioned to Lisa that we saw a green canoe last year in Canyon Falls when we were coming out. She told us that it had gotten away from a group of girls, nobody was hurt. After the high water washed it down in the spring, people had been breaking it up and carrying it out. We saw pieces of it on the campsite at the base of the falls as we passed by.

We were into a strong wind all the way down Wet Lake which always is very tiring by that point in the day. By the time we got the Kawnipi, there were white caps forming. We stayed close to the south shore but it took a real effort to cross the white caps to get to our camp. The water level was so high we just paddled right up to the front of camp. Jarod made the decision to move the tent to a small space just to the west of the normal spot. It worked out well as we avoided sleeping on a tree root and a rock.

I bought a new rain fly for camp and got the next larger size. It turned out to be huge. We laughed as we put it up and joked that if it were just a little bit bigger, we could move the tent under it. It was very nice to not have any leaks and it served us well the entire time we were there.

We used the gas stove to cook noodles for supper and then had our cigars while watching the night sky. There was no moon so we just watched stars and eventually were amazed at the size and brightness of the Milky Way. I had spent the summer cutting down at least a dozen trees buy hand and chopping them up into fire wood. My cardio was off the charts and it really helped me today. I was tired but not exhausted like some years.

I bought new portage shoes which worked out very well. They provided good traction, dried quickly, and offered good support. A couple weeks earlier Genelle had put a patch on the knees of my pants which she told me wouldn’t hold but I knew better. As I sat in camp at the end of the first day, both knees had already blown out. Man, I hate it when she is right like that. Now I have to go the whole trip with only one pair of pants.

Old Camping Journal

Most of you probably don't know that every summer around Labor Day my dad and I head up into the Canadian wilderness for a 1.5-2 week camping trip in the Quetico Park. And no, this is nothing like Jellystone Park or other camp grounds you may be thinking of. It's pure, untouched wilderness that has been designated as a wilderness park to keep it that way. The little island we spend our time is here: 48.377713,-91.209903. The trek begins roughly 10 miles (as the eagle flies) south east in Saganaga Lake. There is a little island, Hook Island, on US-Canada boarder (48.225049,-90.963367). We get dropped off there at ~7:30am with our 3 packs and our canoe. These are packs weighing 70, 35, and 30 lbs each, along with an extra 65lbs for the canoe once the roads and other gear gets lashed in. From there we paddle out south west, around Cache Point, and into Cache Bay to stop at the ranger station for our camping and fishing permits and to catch up with Ranger Janice. She's been manning that station for 26 years now, and we've seen her all but 1 of our ~14 trips there. After that we head north and up what is known as the "Falls Chain" route into the park. It gets it's name from the 8 or so waterfalls/rapids that must be portaged around in order to make it to Kawnipi Lake. Portages are best described as poorly-maintained trails through the woods. They are rocky, rooty, marshy, terrible things. As long as you can physically get a canoe from start to finish, no maintenance is done. You often find downed trees you have to step over, creeks you need to leap across, along with some truly dangerous drops less than a foot off of the narrow portage. All while carrying over 100lbs of gear (2 packs or a pack and the canoe). All in all, we travel something like 20 miles of portages and paddling in a really long, 10-12 hour travel day. Much longer than any outfitter would recommend, but we want to get to our little island asap so we can set up for some fishing and only make camp once.
Lucky for us, that first day is the most energy we'll have to expend for quite awhile. We'll spend the next 5-8 days just chilling on Kawnipi and fishing. We've even cut down our exploring over the years as we find more and more great fishing spots in close proximity. Each one works better/worse in various weather conditions, so we just wake up and see what mother nature has in store for us and head out to the appropriate spot. Fish for a few hours keeping only enough for lunch, then pull off at any number of great spots for shore lunch of fresh fried fillets. You really can't get any better fish than what we have. Within about 30 minutes the fish for from swimming around on the stringer to being fried and on our plates. Typically we eat mainly walleye, but depending on what we get first it could also be smallmouth bass or northern pike. You never know what they day will bring, so we just keep the first 2-3 fish we catch. After lunch and the occasional short nap we repeat the sequence for dinner. 1 less fish and a side dish is really the only difference. It's the perfect life.
Dad wisely keeps a journal during the trips so we can actually remember what happened when afterwards. It's shocking how everything just blends together even after a couple days. And you see so many incredible things, it's easy to forget some of them. Everything including fishing highlights, weather conditions, wildlife seen gets written down. Dad will then type it all up in later in a more concise and flowing form. It's always interesting to see how many comments we make about the weather when we're there. Unlike home life, it really is the driving factor in everything you do. Where you fish, what you wear, even whether or not it's safe to even leave camp. We usually have at least 1 day every trip where a front moves in and the wind/waves prevent us from safely being out in the canoe. So the journal has constant references to temperature, cloud cover, wind speed and direction, etc.
So that's the gist of what we do. And for the first time, I'm going to start publishing the journal entries here. I'll start with the 2008 trip while dad assembles the official 2010 version. (We had to skip 2009 due to my shitty job working for hellish IQuum. Not that I'm bitter or anything...)
I'll start this week and put them out there in reasonable chunks with some edits made. I'm sure no one really wants to read every detail about the trip. Anyone that wants to hear more can just let me know and you can get the unedited version. And of course I can offer up many many stories from trips past.

Lessons Learned While Biking

So I've been riding my bike to work for about 6 months now. Not every day; just 2-3 days a week. I won't ride in the rain and won't ride if I have a hockey game or something similar that night. I wouldn't say I've necessarily learned anything new about drivers, pedestrians, and other bikers during that time, but I've certainly clarified some things. Boston drivers not only are complete assholes, but they have a complete lack of respect for the 'right of way' rules.
First, the right-of-way issues. It's unexpected, but it's actually not drivers not yielding to someone else's right-of-way that pisses me off the most. It's morons stopping for absolutely no reason to let someone else go. Like when I'm waiting to cross a road and patiently for the cars that have green lights to just get out of the way so we can all move on with our lives in the most efficient way. Exactly the way that the traffic engineers that designed this system intended. But no, 1 moron decides that they should be nice to me and screw it up for everyone. 1) I'm probably not paying attention and instead taking in the scenery while I wait for their light to turn red. Meaning they sit there frustrated with me for not noticing their idiocy while other drivers do their best not to hit them. 2) I'm not going anywhere until I know everyone else on the road won't run me down. So even when I notice your stupidity, I still have to stand there until either the other drivers also stop or your light turns red. Even though it's technically a no-lose situation for me, it annoys the piss out of me. It makes other drivers hate bikers even though it's moron drivers that really caused the problem.
People talking on cell phones while driving terrify me. I see quite alot of bad driving now that I'm on the road a bit longer and really need to watch every car since they're not watching me. And while not every bad driving move I see involves a cell phone, the vast majority do. It's a simple fact of the human brain; you can't have an involved cell phone conversation and pay attention to your surroundings. Study after study has proved this out. Me watching people on their phones while driving proves this out. Yes, science has proven that roughly 2% of the US population can actually multitask. However, that means that 98% of everyone can't. Guess what...you're in that 98%!! Hang up the f'n phone and drive your car. Listen to the radio. Take in some sights and sounds. Pay f'n attention to what your doing. We all know that whatever conversation you're having can wait until you get to where you're going. I'm once again making my pledge to completely stop taking on the phone while driving. I already only do it at red lights and while stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic, but it's going back to a complete ban. It's comically dangerous and just unnecessary. It's also why God invented voice mail and satellite radio.

Travel "light"

This is probably going to be the first time I'll be happy that Hayley never reads these. She always claims to, but the closest she ever really gets is running her eyes over it and not really reading it. As a side note, I'm getting myself in trouble twice in this one post. Efficiency people, it's what engineers do.
Hayley is off on another interview trip this weekend, which means another round of packing and trying to shoe-horn it all into a carry-on bag. As I have seen this process a dozen times, I'm well aware of the short-comings and weaknesses. Her achilles heel is her bag of liquids. And ever time I watch this process I ask the obvious question...{dramatic pause so you all can say it with me}...do you really need all of this shit? Moisturizers, creams, gels, sprays, soaps, pastes, tubes, cylinders, bottles, it's a boggling array of shapes and colors and textures.
Today I missed the packing show, but did talk to her post-security when her flight was delayed because of weather. (Oddly enough, she should have called after landing by now. Maybe I should check on her flight...) She claims she actually made it through with more than her allotted 3-1-1 bag. Which of course prompts me to resume my "do you really need all that shit" questioning. Naturally I start with logical questions like, "What would happen if you just used hotel soap instead of your face wash?" "What if you didn't use moisturizer for a couple days?" "Can't you just use hotel shampoo and conditioner for 2 days?" And so forth. And as expected the answers get more and more annoyed as I go. Turns out it's just not something you ask a girl. Who knew?! I've seen her spend 30 minutes or more trying to fit all her liquids into an array of 3oz bottles and fit them all into a quart ziploc bag. Sometimes she quits and just checks the bag; sometimes she hopes she can get away with a little extra. All because something terrible happens if she uses hotel conditioner for 2 days.
Not for nothing, apparently similar things happen if you don't have 2 pairs of shoes for every day along with your own hair drier. But hey, I'm a guy and what do I know.
And now just to round this out in the usual way, Tyler is doing quite well. He's up to 30lbs and showing no signs of slowing down. He even got his first real big-dog tooth. Top-left canine. He's been sans tooth for a few weeks, so it looks like I'm losing my tug-of-war advantage. He's also finally able to just jump up on the couch at will. A couch that he finds very comfortable. We don't always find him up there when he's alone, but it's up to about 50/50. He still can't get up on the bed, but we know that's just a matter of months at this point.
We also swung by the breeder's house over the weekend to see some prospective puppy-owners and let them see some dogs. He had a new litter that was just up to 8 weeks and ready to go to good homes. It was shocking to picture Tyler being that small. We look over the old pictures and see it, but it's just no match for live. It wasn't that long ago that he was all tiny and unsteady. Good times, good times.
And with that, it's time to enjoy some more international beers to celebrate International Beer Day.
Peace!!

15 Cars

While we were doing some paint scraping over the weekend I had my Chumby rocking some Pandora Radio and had the misfortune of a Nickleback song sneaking onto my 'Halestorm' channel. (A channel intended to be only rock bands with chick singers. I have a thing for rock chicks.) Some generic song about wanted to be a rock star, just with new lyrics regarding the specifics of what he'd have. 1 item was 15 cars, which naturally got me thinking about what I would actually have if I could get any 15 cars in the world. So here's my list. And these are what I would pick if I had to do everything I do in my normal life with only these 15 vehicles. A garage full of Murciélagos is awesome...until I have to go play hockey or buy a new table saw. Or snowboarding. Or commuting to work on the shitty roads I have to use. You get the point.
1) 911 Turbo Cabriolet. If you know me, you know I lust after these cars like nothing else. I would gladly trade 1/2 my liver for one. Maybe even a kidney.
2) 1966 Mustang Fastback (4-speed, 289 Hi-Po of course). This is really the only car I would give up an organ for.
(for ease I'm continuing my Mustang list here.)
3) 1970 Boss 429. Sure, the 302 is the better all-around car, but there's just something about driving around with 7.2L of old-school Detroit muscle under the hood.
4) ~1990 Mustang 5.0 The fox chassis 'stangs were great looking rides at the end of the run. And pretty much as easy as a lego set to modify.
5) Shelby Cobra. This is a great car built by a great man. Take a little European car and jam an American V8 under the hood. While the 289 version would be plenty, I’m going to have to go with the 427 (and no, not one that actually has the 428). Big-block V8 in a tiny roadster. That’s fun.
6) 1959 Corvette. Another pretty perfect car. Or maybe it's just that I'm a sucker for chrome in the doors. I remember getting a 'vette poster when we drove through Bowling Green, Kentucky and falling in love with the late 50’s cars.
7) 2010 Corvette ZR1. If I’m going to own a classic ‘vette, might as well get the latest and greatest. Especially when it’s really the only shining example of raw American muscle out there.
8) Lotus Exige. This would perfectly fill my commuting needs. Something nice a small to tear-ass around city streets with, fit into into parking spot, all without any excess space or weight. Just enough room for my, Tyler, and my work shit.
9) Subaru WRX STi. Cause I need some AWD hauling capabilities for snowboarding trips. Get the 5-door hatchback with a roof rack and some studless snow tires I’m good to go. It’d be like Pike’s Peak every time I go to the hill.
10) Hummer H1. Sometimes you just need a vehicle that can go anywhere, anytime. Like if I need to run out for more beer in the middle of a blizzard. Or if a bridge collapses and I need to shuttle orphans safely to the other side of a river while getting more beer.
11) Lamborghini Diablo Spyder. The Diablos were quite possibly my favorite Lambos out there. Neck-and-neck with the Countachs at the end of their run. 12 cylinders of Italian power and a no roof? It can’t get much better than that.
12) Lamborghini Countach. The car inspired the wedge-shaped supercar design, cab-forward design, and the dreams of any male growing up in the 80s and 90s.
13) 80s-era Bronco. Don’t need any specific year, just not white. I need something to haul lumber, sheetrock, plywood, power tools, etc, as well as something to mess with. I could finally put those hours watching “Trucks” to good use…maybe. Or just pull it out the 3 times a year I actually work on the house instead of just talking about it.
14) 1996 Nissan 300ZX. With t-tops and the turbo, naturally. I still remember seeing a commercial with the car zipping around roads in race-fashion and ending with just a single typewriter stroke of the letter “Z” on white paper. The cars were awesome, too.
15) Last, but certainly not least, 2010 Nissan 370Z. This is a car that is constantly right on the edge of serious consideration for me. I could afford it if I really wanted to, could probably fit my hockey gear in there if I had to, and could maybe sell Hayley on the idea if I distracted her with something shiny. It’s so tantalizingly close, and yet so far away.
So there you have it; my list of 15 cars. I think I did a solid job of covering all of my needs while picking up all of my dream cars. Are there cars I would have liked to include? Of course. But like I knew, 15 cars is a tough number to work with. It’s enough where you can start getting into your 2nd-tier of dream cars, but not enough to just start throwing the kitchen sink at your garage. Enough to get some that only fill specific roles (Bronco, STi, Hummer), but not enough to fill every role (Rolls Royce, Veyron, More Mustangs). Naturally, if I didn't have to live with only these 15 cars some different choices could be made. But I'm pretty happy with my list even with that restriction. This is a pretty impressive stable of horses.
Feel free to share your own list, or even just a partial list, in the comments. Not that anyone actually ever comments. But if you don't dream, you can't achieve a dream. Or something else lame like that.
PEACE!

Puppy Update

I've got an afternoon Cubs game on WGN to watch and Tyler is napping happily next to me, so this seems like a good time to post an update.
We've now had the little guy for 5 weeks and things really couldn't be going any better. He's had very few accidents in the house (knock on wood), loves going to daycare, and doesn't really chew anything besides his toys. Eats and drinks well and consistently gets a great bill of health and behavior from the vet.
We've got a bell by the back door for him to ring when he wants to go out and he's actually starting to get it. He knows that when we ring the bell it's time to go out, but he hasn't quite figured out how to ring it on his own to go out. I think he's bumped it a couple times, but not enough to really ring it. But it's only been a week or so with the bell, so he's actually picking it up very quickly.
I've also started working on some basic tricks. "Sit" and "come" being the first 2 that we're doing. Tough to tell if he's really getting it or not. He usually sits when he has to be in 1 spot for a long time, and will always come running if he sees you holding a treat. But this is how it does. Keep reinforcing the words with actions and eventually it becomes a habit. Soon I can start working on trickier things like getting me beer from the fridge and getting me beer from Gordon's. I figure if I get him a little cart, I can call in an order and my credit card # and have them load him up and cart it back.
So far daycare is going great. The people and facility at Tail Waggerz really couldn't be better. And I'm not just saying that because I know Robyn is going to be reading this. He gets lots of other dogs/puppies to play with and seems to love being there. He gets excited and runs to their gate every morning. Even better, Robyn often takes videos/pictures of him playing and texts them to me. Of course, a newer yellow lab puppy, Haley, has been a bit bitey with him. I've seen enough video to know he's not innocent in the situation. He starts plenty of shit on his own. And it's all part of puppies growing up. He needs to learn how to respond to play that's too rough just as she needs to learn not to be too rough.
Hmmm...this is pretty boring. But I really don't have anything fun or exciting yet. He's just the greatest puppy of all time. Handles stairs with no problems, loves to sit and chew his toys on his own when we're busy, sleeps through the nights, and is already housebroken. Now that summer is upon us and he's getting older we'll have some opportunities for hilarity. He's getting old enough to start taking walks and I know he won't be this well behaved for long. Soon enough he'll have the size and energy to start tearing up the house. He put on 8lbs in the first 4 weeks we had him (almost double!), so at this rate he'll be 25lbs by the end of July and over 30lbs before Labor Day. Should be a handful!
Speaking of putting on weight, it's time to get little man his dinner. That's one of the few things that'll break up a nap.
Hope everyone enjoys their holiday weekend!! Remember to shoot off plenty off fireworks!!
PEACE!

Blackhawks = Champions!!

The Blackhawks finally did it! They finally completed their turn-around and won sport’s greatest trophy; Lord Stanley’s Cup. The agony I felt in 1992 at the hands of Super Mario and Jagr (and immortalized by Jean-Claude Van Dame in “Sudden Death”) is also finally gone. That game 1 loss in ’92 is probably my first memory of sports heart-break. It has since been over-shadowed by roughly 15 Cubs moments, but it will always be the first.
Anyone who saw the videos of the parade and subsequent parties will realize that this is a long time coming for the fans. After 1992, the Hawks management seemed to do everything in their power to destroy the team and its fan base. Until just recently, home games were blacked out on TV. Any and all quality talent was promptly traded away or left unsigned at the end of contracts. Marketing was nonexistent. This was an Original Six franchise that was being left out to rot away to nothing. Over half of the teams in the NHL (16/30) make the playoffs, yet the Hawks continuously missed them. And worse, they weren’t parlaying those high draft picks into anything they could build on.
But fortunately that all changed in recent years when Rocky Wirtz took ownership of the team 2007. He brought in quality front-office guys that knew had to market the team and bring the fans back in. They put all the games back on TV. And most importantly they started locking up talent so they had a foundation to build on. And look how quickly those moves paid off! Suddenly the fans had a reason to care again and responded by filling the stadium for every game. Anyone who’s played sports knows how much of a difference a packed house can make. You’re a little quicker, a little more focused, a little more determined than you would be otherwise.

I also need to give credit where credit is also due; Tyler. I’m not saying the Hawks wouldn’t have won the cup without our puppy, but doesn’t it seem odd that they win it in his first weeks home with us after going 49 years without winning it? So let’s all give a quick stick-tap to Goal Puppy and his winning mojo.
In sadder hockey news, the Boston Sharpshooters did not fare so well in the championship tourney in Toronto last weekend. After cruising through the regular season to a 15-5 record, we hit a pot hole and went 1-2 in the opening games and failed to make the finals on Sunday. But it was still an incredible season and great weekend. And hopefully we can return with most of our roster intact and make another run at it this winter. If we can learn from our mistakes in Toronto, we stand a good chance of getting some hardware next year.
So now I can return to a long summer with the Cubs. And trying to convince myself that it’s not over as lost as it’s mathematically possible to still make the playoffs. And once it’s technically over being 100% sure that next year is the year. I mean, just look at all the young talent they had playing this year! And check out the prospects they’ll be bringing up next year! This shit is practically in the bag!

PEACE!

Puppy Day 2

So the new puppy, Tyler, is finally home! Picked him up from the breeder last night. First evening was pretty uneventful. Peed on the rug a couple times before we figured out his "tell". Was pretty shy and tentative in his new home. And slept every chance he got. So pretty much what we expected. Oh yeah, and he cried himself to sleep and managed to poo all over his crate. I don't know how poo got where it did and I don't want to know.
However, he does seem to be getting better with the crate. I had him in there for a hour and change this morning so I could take a nap, and had him in there for a bit while I cleaned his shit-covered blankets/towels. So maybe he'll only poo or cry tonight. And maybe I'll win the lottery. Side note, we've got guests in from DC tonight, so they'll enjoy the yelping. Hopefully the a/c unit in that room can drone it out.
And to make today even more fun, the Cubs are playing an afternoon game against the Cards! So Tyler gets to watch (aka sleep soundly) a Cubs game on Day #2. Can't beat that. Although the game isn't going so good. The Cubs starter failed to record a single out while giving up something like 5 or 6 straight hits and dropped us in a 5-0 hole. So I guess Tyler is fortunate to be sleeping this one off so far.
Obviously I'm not going to give you a minute-by-minute or cute-action-by-cute action recap. That's just not my style. But he's growing pretty comfortable around the house and does seem to really love being out in the yard. I'd bet he could try to eat random tall grasses for hours. He also doesn't like to be more than a couple feet away from you, and spends 90% of his time within inches. So while it's nice to have him up in your lap now, I'm doing my best to turn him into an ankle dog. Having a 10lb puppy on top of you is cool. Having a 70+lb 1-year-old is not cool. And hopefully he get's more comfortable with some alone time as he gets used to being away from his litter-mates and whelping box.
So all-in-all, not much to report so far. Just working on crate training and getting him house-broken. Right now I can't trust him to be left alone for more than a minute or so, and he doesn't last long in the crate before he starts yelping a bit. Gotta get one of those 2 fixed asap. I need to hit True Value today for some garden stuff, but don't want to leave him here yelping and pooing while I'm gone. So I have to decide if letting f'n furry jerks eat my strawberries is worse than cleaning poo out of his crate for a 2nd time today. It's like Sophie's choice!

PEACE!!

Getting Ready for a Puppy

Well, it's time to start documenting our road to puppy parenthood. We're but 2 weeks away from bringing little Tyler home, and now the "fun" begins. The list of things that need to be procured just keeps getting longer. Crate for home, crate for traveling, food & water bowls, beds, blankets, leash, collar, food, toys, toys, toys, toys, brush, nail clippers, it just never ends.
I'm also amused at how much of this I could remember from when we got our puppy as a kid and yet don't. I have no idea how many nights Buffy yelped herself to sleep at first. How long did it take to housebreak her? How long until we started introducing her to new people and dogs? How did we start training her? What kind of feeding schedule was she on? Part of this I blame on the fact I was probably in 4th grade when this was going on. Part of it is the fact that I've never had a stellar memory for stuff like this. I can still immitate Mark Grace's batting stance and many details of the Cubs-Giants 1-game playoff in 1998, yet I only remember 6f other peoples' birthdays.
On the plus side, we do have good friends with dogs that live nearby and would be happy to help out. And the breeder (Jerry Foti @ Watch City Bulldogges, if I may shamelessly plug him again) is a fantastic guy that would be more than happy to field calls from us every day while we figure it all out. Jerry's also a great resource for vets and pet supplies in the immediate area. And he's an officer of the Olde English Bulldogge Kennel Club (OEBKC). But enough about our puppy daddy.
The real fun begins when decisions need to be made. Biggest one so far; when to have him fixed. Breeder recommends 9-12 months to allow him to grow to a healthy size. Even the vet says 5-7 months for similar reasons, but also to allow their immune systems to get up to speed to aid in handling surgery. But that adds the fun of watching for any aggression or territorial/dominance issues, along with having to watch him like a hawk to keep him from making unauthorized puppies.
But all in all I'm pretty excited. I've wanted a dog pretty much since I left home and Buffy. Yeah, it's a ton of work and I'm sure I'll have days where I wonder what the hell I was thinking, but I know it's worth it. And it helps get me ready to make the jump to kids. Now THAT'S a frightening thought!

Why Are People so Afraid of the LHC Causing a Black Hole?

In case you aren't a nerd or right-wing bible thumper, there is a new particle collider in town. The Large Hadron Collider in Geneva is officially smashing particles together at unheard of speeds. I'm sure it'll be years before we start getting any revolutionary results, but scientists are predicting some pretty important discoveries from this. Every time they make a better collider, we gain more knowledge about the structure of sub-atomic particles. We also gain more insight and verification for the latest in theories on how the universe works. All great things.
Well, not so great if you're a bible-thumper. I'm not saying we should all blindly believe science and discount the stories in the bible. Everyone has a right to believe whatever they want and express those beliefs. They can also do whatever they feel necessary to support and prove those beliefs. The problem I have with bible-thumpers is that they do whatever they can to stifle the progress of science. They seem to feel that because they take the bible as undeniable fact, everyone else should as well and that anyone doing any research on alternate theories is just doing the devil's work and must be stopped. Why? They don't stop you from trying to validate the info in the bible. In fact, the history and science communities often help to find proof to support the bible. They just want to find the truth about what happened in those years without passing judgement on the religious aspect of it.
But I digress...
The real fun is all the people that are so sure that the LHC will create a black hole that will destroy the planet and maybe beyond. There were actually protests and plenty of news coverage as the LHC was being finished on that very topic. Suddenly these people who have rejected all of science's work to this point can understand it better than these physics experts. Odd how that works. And it's really just a moot point. If the LHC does create a black hole that eats the planet, no one will even notice. There would be no apocalypse, no sulfur and brimstone raining down upon us, no locust invasion. Things would all end in a microsecond. If you were a bible-thumper and lived by The Book your whole life, you'll be up in heaven saying "I told you so". Probably standing right next to me while I just shrug my shoulders and say "wow, really didn't see that coming." So what's the big deal? If God really did create the world and everything in it, he granted us this insatiable curiosity and the intelligence to devise ways to slam protons together at ridiculous speeds. Wouldn't we be going against his will if we didn't do this?! Think about it.
Me, I tend to believe what some of the smartest people on the planet say. And they say the world won't end. I also want to know if string theory holds up to more findings or if quantum physics continues its reign on top. Do we really live in a universe of 10 or more dimensions instead of just the 4 we know of? And what's up with the Higgs boson? I want some answers, and the LHC may get me them.

Moving On, New Guilty Wastes of Time

For those that don't know, I recently quit my last job (in one of the most happy days of my life) and took a new one. The job function on paper meant it was a slight step backwards, but we all know paper doesn't tell the story. That previous job was a terrible little medical device company that treated their people like disposable resources to be ridden hard, put away wet, then given to the glue factory once they stop being better than the next horse.
Doubts? When I joined in Feb 2009 the engineering group (HW, SW, Mechanical) was 11 people including managers. During my 1 year there I saw something like 13 people quit or be fired. Possibly more, it's hard to keep count when the turn-over is greater than 100%. They put an incredible value in the number of billable hours you logged each week as opposed to the work you did. If I was given a task and finished it flawlessly in 40 hours and went home, I was given a talking-to because I clearly had a "bad attitude". If I instead stayed an extra 2 hours every day and just goofed off during those extra hours, I'd then be praised for having a good attitude. Same amount of work, same quality. Any and all promotions and raises were based on that same attitude scale. It became clear pretty quickly that I'd never be judged on the quality or quantity of my work, but rather how willing I was to give up every other facet of my life to provide them with more hours to bill against their government grants. And so as soon as a better (meaning any) other offer showed up, I took it and ran.
And now that I have that better job, I finally have a life again. I can work a full day, hit the gym, and still be home before 6:30. And best yet, since work is no longer a soul-crushing exercise in survival I actually have the motivation to do other things! I'm sure everyone realizes that means watching more sports on TV and playing more Wii, but the point is that I now feel like doing it. And I plan on actually building all the various projects I've been cutting out of Popular Science and Mechanics. Persistence of Vision clock, solar cell phone charger, various wood-working projects, etc. Just look at today. I worked 7:30-4:30, hit the gym for an hour, hit the beer store to get some stouts and instead spent some time hanging with the beer guy enjoying some great, rare microbrews. Now I'm home with a belly full of grilled pork chops and I'm working my way through a 4-pack of Murphy's Stout.
And speaking of tonight...I have a new guilty waste of time. The show "Human Target". It's not good. It doesn't have alot of action, acting, or plot. But it's just good enough to hold my attention for an hour. Every time I say it's just not very good and I'm not watching it ever again. And yet every time I stumble across an episode I invariably end up watching it. As I'm doing right now. Fortunately they've added a rather attractive co-star to go with the roving hot girl of the day. And so even though I have new DVDs from Netflix for both Ghost in the Shell: 2nd gig and Gundam: The 8th MS Team, I'm here watching a show that's not nearly as good. Lucky for me, I still have some Murphy's in the fridge and a Blackhawks game coming up at 10pm. Giggity.
I'd also like to give some props to my buddy Javy, who seems to be the only person reading and commenting. Javy, next time you need someone to smack you in the head with a 9" pie tin, you just let me know.
And now, time for more Irish Stout!

Tough Sporting Stretch For Me

This may be a pretty rough March and April for me. Typically I'm all pysched about the Cubs season getting ready to kick off and hoping Purdue can over-achieve and do well in the NCAA Tourney. However, this year looks to be very, very different. After the last few Cubs seasons I'm trying to temper my excitement to avoid the crash. Getting hyped up won't be a problem once games start showing up on TV. Purdue just took a gigantic hit when their top guy, Robbie Hummel, went down with an ACL tear. We went from being #3 in the nation to being more questions than answers.
Let's tackle the bad first. I didn't get to see the Purdue - Minnesota game where he tore said ACL, but I've seen the clip. And it wasn't pretty. You could pretty much tell that his season was down just by the amount of sideways flex in his knee. He really was the heart and soul of our team. He was the one guy we could pretty much always count on to make shots when we really needed it. Our offense was really based around getting the ball into his hands and seeing what happens. In the Michigan State game on Sunday, a loss which really hurt our BigTen Regular Season title hopes, it was clear the guys were still trying to do that. They just kept passing it around and hoping someone would get an open shot. But without Robbie out there to draw consistent coverage, no one was open. It was a painful scene. Now, we do have the talent to rebound and make a great March run. I don't see how we'll get as far as we would have with Robbie, but it doesn't help to think like that. We need the other juniors and seniors to step up their game, and we really need some of the kids to elevate and do their part. Even the freshmen have virtually a full season under their belts, so they can do it. We've got another huge game tomorrow night against IU (those dirty f'n SOBs), then Penn St on Saturday. After that is the BigTen Tourney. So we do have a decent chance to adjust to life without Robbie before the real tourney. I just hope it's enough time.
Now the Cubs. This is yet another year of big expectations. So even though we've haven't won it all in over a century (102 years), and haven't even been to the show in over 1/2 a century (55 years), we're picked by some outlets as a solid bet to do it this year. And that's all fine and good. It means we have the talent level and coaching to pull it off. But of course big expectations can also lead to big heartbreak. Anyone remember 2008 against the Dodgers? Or how about all the years we were supposed to be good and just shit the bed? Makes me almost long for the lean years. 1998 and 2003 were that much greater because we weren't supposed to do anything. So the huge rush at the end was incredible. This year we have a very similar roster to last year. We're just counting on guys to live up to their potential. Big Z needs to finally be the ace he can be. Sorianno needs to wake up and be the hitter he is instead of trying to be a lead-off guy. Aramis's shoulder needs to have healed up properly in winter. Derrick needs to have at least 1 more good year left. Soto needs to play like year 1 instead of year 2. Marmol needs to throw at least as many strikes as balls. And of course the usual new faces in the infield and outfield. I'm doing my best to focus on Purdue and the Blackhawks to avoid getting too wrapped up in the Cubs too early. With 6 months of season, I need to save up my energy.
Wait...spring training games start Thursday and WGN is showing 2 over the weekend. I got some research to do!
PEACE!!

Cheap Health Care Not Always Good

All the rage right now is an overhaul of the health care system to make it cheaper for everyone involved. And while that would be good for some people, I have my doubts as to whether or not it'll be good for the US as a whole.
Case in point...there is an article in a recent Popular Science regarding some very popular drugs losing their patent rights this year. Lipitor being the most prominent. Lipitor made $12.4 billion in sales in '08. $12.4 billion!! On the surface, that seems exorbitant and a symbol of what's wrong. I mean, if we could reduce that by even 10%, we'd save over $1 billion in health care cost. And that is true. However, that means Pfizer has 10% less to invest in R&D to create the next generation of drugs. And that's exactly what's happening. Drug submittals to the FDA are down over 10% and likely going to continue to drop. Eli Lilly is slashing $1 billion from it's budget and cutting 5,000 jobs. If drug companies don't have the money to put into R&D, they can't create the next generation of drugs to treat emerging health issues. Depression, obesity, cancer treatments, etc. Drugs are insanely expensive to get to market. R&D costs to come up with them, years of work to prepare trials, years or decades of patient trials, FDA approval submissions, then if you're lucky, marketing and production costs. Factor in all the drugs that don't make it, and it's alot of money to market a drug that may never really sell.
Another big issue in slashing health care costs is the supply-and-demand problem with MDs. This is an issue that I've been forced to learn first-hand. I don't want to get into raw numbers, but when Hayley graduated from med school her student loan debt was more than our mortgage. Shocking, especially considering she had no undergrad debt. And as a resident, she's making only 5% more than what I made as a test engineer straight out of college back in January 2001. Meaning that without a substantial pay raise as a practicing MD, she'd still be paying off her student loans when she was in her 50s. If she was single, as many residents are, it'd be impossible to take on a mortgage of her own. And while home-ownership is a privaledge and not a right, a scant few will willingly decide to spend 12 years of schooling, the last 8 of which involve non-stop 80 hour or more work/study weeks, to spend their lives renting apartments. This will create a huge drop in the number of people that choose that career path; even less that go on to pursue specialties like surgery, cardiology, reproductive fields, etc. The likely immediate effect of this is what Massachusetts saw after they imposed mandatory health care. It become very hard to find a PCP (primary care physician) and even harder to get an appt. To make matters worse, with our current system only the best med students make it into residency programs and only the best residents make it out to secure jobs. But if you have less going in and the same number coming out, students that normally wouldn't survive make it all the way to being practicing physicians. So after waiting extra weeks/months to get an appt with your PCP, now you're getting sub-standard care from them. Sounds appealing, doesn't it?
I'm not saying all of this will necessarily come to pass. But it's something that needs to be considered before we all jump on the 'make health care cheaper' band-wagon. If people want the expensive exploratory tests they've come to expect, they have to pay for it. X-Rays, MRIs, CT scans, mammograms, EKGs, blood work, these aren't cheap. Surgeries aren't cheap. You can either have great doctors and great testing, or you can have cheap health care. You can't have it both ways. If anyone has a way to accomplish both, I'd love to hear it.