Not a Good Start

The Brewers are 0-2 going into their game at Miller Park tomorrow. I would feel better about game 3 if Sabathia had pitched a strong game. I'm not sure what we have to throw at the Phillies that will extend the series. I am envious of those of you that have tickets for the game tomorrow. Go Crew!

I see that Bucks single game tickets go on sale tomorrow. With the move to pick up Jason Richardson, I thought the Bucks might be going places. Then I read this article. Now I am not quite as excited. In fact, I am bracing myself for another season of defense-less Bucks basketball. *sigh*

Move-In Day #1

Today is Early Move-In Day here at UW Oshkosh. We have greeters, Odyssey leaders and desk workers moving. They get to avoid the rush of move-in days so that they can help us move in all of the residents of Webster Hall.

So far, everything has gone pretty well...no major issues with the move-in process. This means Jim gets to spend a lot of time in his office getting things done. :)

Other News:

• The Badgers won today...against Akron. Seriously...they always have such a cream puff non-conference schedule. But, their Big Ten schedule is rough. They can probably use all the victories they can get!
• The Brewers won! They are 22 games over .500. That is crazy. ESPN.com lists them as having an 89% chance of making the playoffs. Yes, these are the Brewers we are talking about.
• ESPN does not seem to have all that much faith in the Bucks. They have them set to place 12th in the East and finish under .500.
  

A Few Sports THoughts...

The Bucks continue to make moves in the off season, as they will be signing Tyronn Lue. This move makes sense to me. You can never have too much depth and Lue provides some depth at the guard position. I still feel as though the Bucks have some work at the Power Forward position, as I'm not sure that Villanueva is the long-term solution. Even if they are done, I feel as though the Bucks have a shot at being in the playoffs, especially in the Eastern Conference. Every time I get my hopes up, however, the Bucks manage to get injured, tank the season and make Buck fans depressed.

I am really nervous about the second half of the season for the Brewers. I appreciate that the owner is willing to make trades to win now. As I've said before, this is a major change in strategy. The bullpen is still highly suspect and I'm now sure if it can carry us through the season. Our starting pitching is great and our offense will be better once everyone starts to click. I want to believe they can finish strong...and this may be the year they have to do it. With Sheets and Sabathia being free agents...I doubt they'll be here. Hart, Weeks and Fielder (among others) will want new contracts. Will they have enough to sign them all? Are we willing to wait to see prospects develop?

Favre is really starting to tick me off. In the end, the Packers are smart to not release Favre. I don't buy the argument that the Packers "owe" him anything. You're not letting a franchise player go for nothing because he retired when he wasn't ready to retire. Maybe he'll end up back with the Packers...but you won't see Favre anywhere else.

A Few Interesting Links for the Day

Here are a few interesting links for you to check out today:

The Power of Watermelon - I found this linked from the Drudge Report. Here's another reason to have that watermelon for dessert over the 4th of July weekend.

What Exactly Does Retirement Mean? - I found this on ESPN.com. Apparently, Brett Favre has the itch to return. Favre has since gone on record to say that there are simply rumors. I want to believe him, but I have this feeling Favre isn't completely retired. Check some of the comments left by readers...they are priceless.

Another Step Toward Moving - I found this on EPSN.com. One more step has occurred to allow the Seattle Supersonics to move to Oklahoma City. From what I am reading, it looks like there is plenty of blame to go around. With the Bucks record recently and the iffy fan base, it makes you wonder if the Bucks may be the next team to move. Not a whole of players are excited to play in Milwaukee.

Big Break-Up - When you think of the contract that A-Rod is under, this could be a messy divorce if it comes to it.

Other News:

• The Neenah softball team lost last night. We lost 10-1. We could not string any hits together. Hopefully, a practice will be scheduled for Sunday or Monday. That would be very helpful.
• I continue to read for License to Preach school. I have gotten through five books or so and need to get started on some of the papers.
• Christa has gotten a lot of scrap booking done over the last few weeks.
  

Milwaukee Sports Report

Ok, so the Milwaukee Bucks just suck. This was supposed to be the season that we saw a real turn around. The Bucks had picked up some quality big men to help the front court and you always have Michael Redd. A few injuries later, this team is now one of the worst teams in the league. It's painful...I don't even just the box scores the next day anymore. I know it's going to be a loss. I hope they keep this team together next year. If everyone stays healthy, they have a shot. That requires them all to stay healthy. *sigh*

Here's to the Brewers being a breath of fresh air in the Wisconsin sports doldrums...there's a club with a legacy of winning. Oh, wait a minute. It might be a long spring and summer. Then again, maybe this is their year.

Saturday Potpourri

• I finished my first full week of running since...well, high school. Most other attempts at running have been spotty at best or only haoppen a few days during the week. I am looking forward to resting up on Sunday and building on what I was able to do so far. I weighed 196 this morning and have lost two pounds overall since New Year's. Not bad.
• Christa found a wedding dress and the bride's maid dresses as well. We have had a productive week of wedding planning and it will continue.
• I had my one hour of radio glory on WRST Friday from 5-6 PM. I know at least two people were listening. My good friend Peter Brooks called in to the show and gave me a post-show talk. We actually had a real live caller who had a good question as well. Jason Dufek and I talked about residence life, college student life and how students can "get involved." I had fund, but I doubt I am on my way to a life in radio ;).
• Christa and I head up to Green Bay in a few hours for a Wedding Expo. If we sit through a one-hour presentation, we can get some free stuff. I'm game. And, I'll only miss one half of the first playoff game. I think I get to keep my man-card.
• My home computer is not working. I am typing this entry from the computer in my office, which conveniently, is only about 10 feet from my apartment :). I ran an anti-virus check on my computer and when my computer re-booted, it stays in a continuous re-boot loop. That's what I get for trying to fix my computer.
• The Bucks traded for Earl Boykins and gave up Steve Blake. I can say this is probably the most one-sided trade I have seen for the Bucks since I have followed them as a team.
  

Wisconsin Sports Update

Since I am having something of a burst of posting ideas, I thoughts I might offer a sports update:

Packers - At 7-8, the Packers have a shot at the playoffs. I'll give you a minute to let that sink in. Even though we are 0-6 against teams with a winning record and have only beaten crappy teams, the Packers can make the playoffs with a little help from a few other teams. Even if we did make the playoffs, I don't give us much hope of doing anything. More talk of the playoffs as we get to games that matter. The Giants/Redskins game holds the first key. Go Redskins!

Bucks - The Bucks are in the middle of a five-game winning streak and are currently one game over .500 at 15-14. It has been wonderful to be a on break, have more time to watch sports and see the Bucks winning in the process. Michael Redd is taking it to the hoop, drawing fouls and getting more points. Bogut is slowing establishing himself as a consistent post player. Mo Williams stepped up and filled the point gaurd role. This was a major concern for many folks. We gave some good role-players (Skinner, Garzuric, Blake) to complement some established and up and coming stars. At least they're fun to watch and they're competitive.

Brewers - So, the Brewers have signed Jeff Suppan to a 4-year, $42-million deal. When I first read the news, I was very excited. Adding another arm to the rotation could make the Brewers a formidable opponent. When I was home over the Christmas holiday, I was reading the Milwaukee Journal/Sentinel and read more about the pitcher we are acquiring.

If you look at his overall record, he is not much over 0.500. He is also over 30. While his last few years have been really good, he also played for team in the Cardinals that gave him plenty of run support, something he will not have the luxury with the Brewers. We are also paying him more than twice what the Cardinals were willing to pay him. This is more than we have ever paid for anyone on the Brewers.

While he's a great pick-up for the Brewers, we have invested a lot of money in him. He better be healthy over those three years or the Brewers are truly going to regret this move.

Bucks Tickets

Yesterday, Nick and I went to the Bucks/Celtics game at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee. Nick got some excellent tickets through his work, so we were sitting really close to the court. In fact, we were sitting across the aisle from Senator Herb Kohl.

A VIP in the House

The picture below lets you know how close we were to the court. Unfortunately, the Bucks lost by a lot. They were up by 14 at halftime but proceeded to completely blow in the second half. At least Nick and I had a good time.

Best Seats I've Ever Had

Greetings From Mequon!

My apologies for not posting over the last few days. I have been relaxing at my parent's house in Mequon, WI for the last few days. I will be coming back to Oshkosh, WI tonight since I will be liturgist and guest speaker for the 8:00 AM and 9:30 AM services tomorrow. I am excited to be talking about my Exploration Conference experience. Fear not, even though I have not posted about my thoughts on the conference, I will soon. Stay tuned.

The break has been wonderful. Thanksgiving involved the traditional Droste prime rib and football viewing. Later in the day, I drove to Christa's parent's house and stayed there for awhile. Friday was the traditional day of shopping, beginning the day with my parents and ending the day with Christa. Today, Nick and I will be going to the Bucks game...Nick got us some very good seats. I am excited.

That's all for now; expect more detailed posts upon my return to UWO on Sunday.

The Birthday Weekend [Highlights]

I thought I would take today's entry to cover the highlights of the birthday weekend. It felt like this weekend was never going to end...it was great. There was always something going on. I was sad to have it end last night, but it is time to move with life after turning thirty.

Friday (The Breese Hall Birthday Party) - The pictures from this party are being developed as I write. They will be picked up tomorrow and posted on Facebook (with a few omissions due to content) Wednesday. I will also put a few choice pictures on the blog on Wednesday. Major events of the party:

• My best friend (and best man for the wedding) came up for the party. I had no idea he was coming to the party; he drove up from Milwaukee. He stayed for the entire party and got to witness all sorts of people that make of the residence life team. Thanks, Nick!
• A lot of people were introduced to the power of Guitar Hero. A lot of people are now disciples of Guitar Hero!
  
• The rootbeer keg only lasted two hours. I honestly thought we'd have leftover rootbeer...I was wrong. Never fear Breese hall leaders, I did save some rootbeer for you GLACURH attendees.
• I was not able to get an exact count, but 62 people signed in the guestbook...there were definitely more people than that. The world will never know the exact attendance.
• Thank you to everyone that brought cards or gifts.
  
• More on this party on Wednesday!

Saturday (Dinner With the Folks)

• We visited Christa's parents to catch up and see how they were doing. We were able to watch the Badgers eek out a victory against Penn State.
• We went out to the Porterhouse for steak. Christa said she has never had a finer filet than the one that she had there. They are so good.
• We had cake and made our way back to Oshkosh.
• Christa and I watched the Bucks win their home opener. They looked really good!
  

Sunday (Appleton & Youth Group)

• Christa and I had lunch at Chili's. We split the double order of fajita. Well, we really didn't split the order. I ate two thirds of it. That's pretty much the theme of the weekend. Jim eating a lot of food. Yeesh. I did some serious celebrating this weekend.
• I watched the Packers blow a game they should have one. Two turnovers in the redzone? Seriously...
• Lastly, I had the opportunity to play Apples to Apples and Bible Trivia with the youth group. That was a lot of fun as well.

I usually don't do lists like this, but I wanted you to know that I had an action packed weekend. Pictures of the party on Wednesday!

"Growing Up"

I have always considered myself to be young at heart. In a way, I don't think I'll ever really "grow up" and I really like that. However, over the last few years I feel like I have really matured...which is different, but also similar to growing up. I think that's what I like about being an RHD. With the position comes great responsibility, but you also have the opportunity to work with students who keep you young and relatively current with what's in.

In my first few years at UWO, I felt like I briefly reverted back to being a stereotypical undergraduate students. I couldn't tell you exactly. Part of it had to do with who I was hanging out with. Part of it had to do with being in a position that offered more money that I ever had in my life. Part of it was maybe trying to fill a void in what may not have been a really social undergraduate experience for me. Part of it was still not having fully embraced the religion I had pushed away for so many years.

As a result, I actually drank quite a bit, went out to bars quite a bit and just generally acted foolishly more than I usually did (trust me, it wasn't that much). I used to think that it was OK to drink with undergraduate students, even ones I worked with. I didn't feel very happy about myself overall. Along with re-discovering God, I also realized that those behaviors didn't do me much good...in fact they actually could hurt me.

So now, I don't do those things much anymore...and I'm OK with it. In fact, I feel better about myself. I feel like that while not grown up, I have definitely progressed in adulthood. I have thought about my financial future, my career future, my relationship future (woot!) but yet I can still be young and play video games and live on a college campus.

Other News:

• Christa bought a second guitar for Guitar Hero. Good news! Although I ended up playing way more Guitar Hero than I should have yesterday...I got pretty tired of it by the end of the night.
• It amazes me sometimes that the interactions that I have with folks with the church are like the interactions I have with some college students. You would think sometimes that 60+ year old people would be able to handle situations with some maturity, but sadly this is not always the case.
• I bought NBA Live 2007 last night. I figured it's been two years since I bought the game, it would be nice to have the Bucks new roster. I will probably give a more in depth analysis in the future, but for now, these observations:

1. The Bucks are serverly underrated. They are listed as a 75 overall which is one of the worst in the league. This from a team predicted to make some waves in the East.
2. There are three buttons to shoot the ball: slam dunk, jump shot & lay-up. Huh?!? Why can't one's proximity from the basket determine this. So when I accidentally press "slam dunk" from the three-point line, it could get ugly.
3. On the easiest level, I was only winning by two points at halftime. They have definitely made this game tougher.
4. You better have a fast point gaurd or you are in trouble. Try playing with Mo Williams for a half.

Days Until the Wedding: 216