I Feel Sorry for Brett Favre

This may be the only post I ever write about sports. I just can't let this Brett Favre circus pass (hoping it passes, anyway) without comment, though.

I'll skip the assessment of his skills, because I'm no sports analyst. I'm not even really a sports fan. He could be the best quarterback to ever play the game, but this unretirement nonsense has nothing to do with how good he is. In fact, I don't even think it has much to do with football.

It's all ego and emotion that caused Favre to rethink his decision to leave the NFL after last year. He technically only retired in March and there's been speculation about his return for the entire four months since.

Why do I care? Well, I've always liked Brett Favre in the way non-fans show interest in the superstar because he's the only player we've heard of. I also visited Lambeau Field and watched the Packers training camp on a family trip in 1997. Surprisingly, I quite enjoyed it!

Reasons aside, I mostly care about this because I feel sorry for Favre. It seems that no one cares if he returns or not and the less interest shown, particularly from the Packers, the more he seems motivated to play again.

Did he want a bigger production made about his retirement? To be begged to stay? Or is it simply that he missed the game and can't stand the thought of not playing? How could he not have realized this before?

Favre is making himself look foolish. Have some pride, man! Sure, there seems to be little doubt that he will come back and play well. Maybe performance negates appearance in sports. I just don't think he's going to get what he wants out of this and I feel bad for him. He is a man in need of psychological help. I'm not joking.

Do Not See This Movie

Even though I knew it was mindless and silly, I avidly watched Sex and the City. I still watch it in syndication on occasion. I've seen every episode at least twice and many episodes half a dozen times.

Initially I wanted nothing to do with that show. Back in 2000, I subscribed to HBO for Sopranos and only started to watch SATC because a friend suggested I might like it. Like sushi and $20 mani/pedis, what single 20-something living in New York City wouldn't become addicted to it? Fashion, restaurants, girlfriends and, of course, dating.

So, despite my initial misgivings, I came to anticipate Sunday nights and 30 minutes with the four women who represent the most extreme parts of any of us, depending on the day. One season remained when I left NYC. When that season ended, my connection to the city fell further from my grasp.

Upon reflection about how the show ended, however, I came to realize how wronged I felt that Carrie and Big got together. On his time table, of course, and with the disturbing message that if a woman keeps herself gorgeous while putting up with endless crap and waits and hopes long enough, the frog will finally turn into a prince.

Blech. Ick. Stupid. Is that really what women want to believe? And if it is, then what is wrong with us?

When the movie came out earlier this year, I wasn't excited to see it. But I wanted to see the resolution. Would Carrie wise up and dump that idiot the way he had done to her countless times? Maybe reunite with Aiden or some similarly worthy guy?

Frankly, I didn't have much interest in seeing what would happen to the other characters. Samantha's fun to watch, no matter what she does. Charlotte's so irritatingly boring that I don't even care. Miranda's smart and makes the right choices in the end.

But Carrie, she's more of a wild card. And the one for which I held out hope. I had read a movie review that led me to believe I might be happier with this ending than I had been with the show's ending. I wish I could find that review, because it wasn't at all what I expected.

Spoiler alert. If you don't want to know, stop reading now. However, anyone really interested in SATC has surely already seen the movie.

Here are the lessons learned from this movie, in no particular order.

1. Wanting to get married is selfish and ruins things.

2. Having your dream wedding is grounds for being left at the altar (or on the library steps, as the case may be).

3. Getting caught up in wedding frenzy is an offense equal to abandoning your partner on their wedding day and, thus, requires the same apology.

4. Once said apologies have been exchanged and courthouse vows exchanged, prince and princess ride off into the sunset, sure to have a perfectly blissful life.

While I wanted to throw a rock at the screen (if only I'd had one) and even the more emotional Melissa was disillusioned, a woman near the front of the theater found loud sobbing a more appropriate reaction. Maybe she was crying because the ending was so dumb? I know I wanted to. I suppose it's more likely that she felt a profound emotional connection to events her own life. If only I could have found her, given her a big hug and suggested she get a connection to her self-esteem.

Sex and the City was a fun show and a fun movie. But I'm glad I watched this in my 20s and 30s, not more impressionable teens and 20s. There is an insidious message in this type of programming that is not doing women any favors.

Although I remind myself that the four SATC women are so extreme that only when combined do they form some semblance of a "real" woman. We're all a different blend of these characters, more (Miranda) or less (Charlotte), but I resent the implication that even a tiny portion of any of us should include a self-loathing emotional masochist who kisses the same frog over and over, thinking he's a prince. When he and everyone else knows he's still just a slimy frog.

And they all lived happily ever after. Ribbit. The end.

Our New (Old) Roommate

Jack got a job! I mean, who wouldn't hire this guy?


The Hampton Inn front desk won't require such fancy attire, but I have a feeling that over-dressing for the interview may have helped him seal the deal! Unfortunately, his ensemble cost more than he'll make in a week, so I hope he has many chances to wear it again.

As I know all too well from my early career, getting a job feels great but the low pay can be painful. Fortunately for Jack, he proved himself to be a good roommate last summer so we're letting him move back in with us!

He claims to be over the Lean Pockets-n-Eggos phase, which is good because we don't have a microwave and waiting 30 minutes for a Lean Pocket from the oven sort of nullifies the point, doesn't it?

Saturday in Brookings

I really enjoyed my first Brookings Summer Arts Festival in over 10 years! I don't have photos from that, but I do have a few from our night on the town. First, Amber, Jon, Melissa and I had dinner at Bravo's (I refuse to capitalize the v).

The meal was fantastic and the setting sublime. Except that Jon's shrimp diavolo may have made him sick. Don't order that! Brookings has long been in need of a quality food in an upscale setting and this is top notch.

After dinner, Amber gave us a campus tour. I've been there quite often recently, but Melissa hasn't been there in a few years. For those who may not recall, Melissa and I graduated on the same day in 1995 (wow! that's a long time ago) and even sat just two seats apart during the ceremony. The guy whose name falls between 'Hea' and 'Hei' was either entertained or annoyed by us for over two hours.

In a somewhat successful attempt to 'relive the good old days,' we visited some of our old haunts as well as some of the new (i.e., renovated) ones.

Good times, good times, as evidenced by Melissa's disappearing act into the covers. Yes, she's in there somewhere!

Thanks for your hospitality, Jon and Amber!

Valleyfair!

Thursday morning, after getting everyone moving (some people were up until 3 am. I'm sure I don't have to tell you who they were) we were off to Valleyfair where we met Jon, Amber, Jon's friend Brett and Brett's nephew Andy.

We looked pretty lively when we arrived, but we only made it on a handful of rides before a serious storm - green sky, sideways rain - shut down the rides. Thank goodness we were able to ride out the storm in the bar!

The storm passed and within 15 minutes (just after I changed into warmer clothes), the sun came out and it was hot as before the storm. Since I'm not interested in the scary rides, Chris and I watched the kids go on some.



Then Chris decided to take a ride on The Wave. That's him in the center of the boat, grimacing. Apparently, he didn't expect to get soaked from head to toe!

After Valleyfair we went back to the house for a little more Rock Band and then went out for seafood. I won't mention the restaurant because we had really poor service. I think everyone liked their food, but it just goes to show that service makes all the difference.

Jack the recent hotel/restaurant management grad had a little talk with the manager. This resulted in a small discount, but I don't think anyone will request that place next time. Chris might as well add this to his list of reasons not to leave the house!

Jon was also irritated because he was convinced that they short-changed him on his king crab legs. Sorry brother, but I looked it up online and every source I found indicated that each king crab leg is 1/2 pound at a minimum.

Thanks to everyone who came to visit. Please come again soon! We now know that we have room for at least nine adults and three kids in our house and could probably accommodate more!

Rock Band

It's rare to have so much excitement in the middle of the week, but we were fortunate to have a house full of guests the past two nights! Mike, Deena, Austin, Madison, Mindy, Ben, Kailey and Jack all stayed on Wednesday night (Jack actually came on Tuesday).

The Footes arrived in time for dinner. We ate chicken - Mike ran the grill - along with potatoes, veggies and watermelon. After dinner, we took a walk to the creek and then drove downtown to show Madison the tall buildings.


The Andersons arrived later that night and we played Mike's Rock Band on xbox 360. I think I have to get this game! It was SO much fun. I'm terrible at guitar and bass, did OK on drums sometimes, but really, really enjoyed singing.

The game doesn't care that I was woefully out of tune (unlike the other players and observers!) or don't know the words. The key is to follow the pitch. I found that better I knew the words, the easier that was to do.

Here's the band in action:


Amber has some scary-sounding video of me singing that I'm sure she can't wait to post. Consider yourself warned.

Stay tuned for part two - our day at Valleyfair! - on Monday.

Birthdays and Kids

Happy Birthday Grandma (July 6) and Bobbi Jo (today)

Grandma with four of her kids

This photo is from Memorial Day, but it's so cute that it's worth showing again. I love the look on Trevor's face!

My buddy Madison (who's coming to visit today!) getting ready for a dip in the lake.

Just a few more inches on those legs (ok, two dozen inches, at least) and Trevor will be driving Jack's jeep.

A few thoughts...

Once again, I neglected to take a single picture of a fun-filled weekend! (Mayday: Mom please send me some pics when you have a chance...)

I'll post some photos later in the week. In the meantime, might I share with you a few thoughts and observations that have been roaming around in my head?

- I listened to Bill Clinton on the radio for about half an hour while driving today. Despite his sometimes ill-advised comments during the campaign, he seems back to his old, inspirational self. I could listen to that guy all day. I'm not sure I've ever felt an ounce of inspiration from our current president. Maybe a little after 9/11 when he gave that speech from atop the rubble. But that was mostly the PTSD. Is it November yet?

- Three young women I know have died needless, tragic deaths in the past three months. I wrote about Katie in April. A couple of weeks ago my second cousin died in a motorcycle accident. Yesterday I found out that a former colleague from New York (to whom I last talked in December 2006), killed herself. I hope 'they' are right when they say these things come in threes. I feel so sorry for all of the families involved.

- I asked Chris to buy limes at the grocery store today. He called to ask how much I thought a lime cost. Fifty cents? Maybe a dollar? Not at Whole Foods. Their limes (possibly filled with gold) are currently going for three dollars. Each. EACH!? There's no recipe that will be so terrible without limes that I would pay that much. Anyone else worried that price increases will never stop? Stock up on Ramen now. You never know!

On a lighter note...

- Angie was crowned Princess in the Miss Delano competition on Thursday night! She rode the float in the 4th of July parade on Friday (the largest and oldest in the state) and that was just the first of dozens of activities she (and Bonnie and Duane) will participate in this year. Congrats!

- We had a great time at Roy Lake. Chris' first ever visit included golf, pontoon ride, convertible cruise, card playing, road trip to Pickerel Lake, a little sunburn and (too much) eating. It's always fun to watch the kids enjoy the lake like we all did years ago. Kailey skied like a pro - way to go!

That's all I have to say for today. Watch for photos later in the week!

For Super Cooks!

I've been a terrible blogger lately. Or should I say non-blogger? No excuses, but that's not changing today!

With the holiday weekend coming up, I'm looking for some new and interesting recipes. Often, I have an ingredient or two in mind (goat cheese craving anyone?), but am not sure what to make.

If you're like me - or if you happen to have a bunch of random ingredients and want some new ideas about how to put them together - check out SuperCook.com. You simply enter ingredients and the site provides recipes that contain them. They also divide them into 'starters,' 'entrees' and 'desserts.'

Of course I have a complaint. The site has most ingredients, but some key things are missing. For example, roasted red peppers. They're a cupboard staple in my house, but SuperCook doesn't recognize them! In any case, it's a useful site. Check it out and HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY TO ALL!!