‘Nuff said!

Full disclosure: I do not know Lewis Hamilton or Max Verstappen personally. I have no personal agenda either way even though I am a Hamilton fan. As such I still admire and respect Max Verstappen and many other drivers on the circuit.

I loved the close racing this year and expected to see a tight battle in the last race to determine the champion. And it was. However, I did not expect any driver to be “given” the championship.

Michael Masi, what you did at the final race of the season was embarrassing, atrocious, sinister, selfish, inconsiderate, biased, despicable, preferential, prejudiced, bigoted, undeserving and just plain wrong. You made the singular decision to circumvent the rules to “appease the fans”? What? You say the fans deserved to see a good race? How about the drivers? Did they deserve a fair fight ON THE TRACK?

In the name of close racing for the fans Michael Masi deliberately set up Lewis Hamilton for an unfair fight. If he wanted the racing to be fair why did he not stop the race, let all of the drivers get fresh tires and then have a one lap shoot out? You know why? He did not want a fair race. He wanted to deny Lewis his 8th title. Didn’t want Mercedes to “win again”.

So Max Verstappen gets the participation trophy. He had his chance to win outright, but circumstances had him behind Lewis. F1 gave him the advantage to win. Just see for yourself.

If Max Verstappen, Christian Horner, Red Bull or Honda had any decency or were REAL competitors they would at the very least admit this fact. But no. Each of them basked in the glory of winning with benefit of an unfair disregard for the rules. Honda, with their well-earned reputation for automotive excellence, should never settle for being handed a championship. But settle they will. Red Bull touts it’s energy drink as a product that gives you a boost, wings as they say. Guesss Max doesn’t actually drink Red Bull…..As it turns out the company revealed itself as weak, not strong enough to accept or admit the real results of competition. Remember that the next time you see their commercials. Christian Horner accused Mercedes of cheating all season long and then accepted the championship trophy via benefit of the same double standard that he claimed to be a victim of. Shameful, sad and telling. And then there is Max himself. Instigating track incidents, running Lewis wide at any chance and not ever accepting any responsibility. Given minimal penalties each time and even still needed help from Michael Masi to win the title. Can you say “false entitlement”? I hope Max relishes his “participation trophy”.

Ah yes the participation trophy generation. Who knew it would reach the highest level of automobile racing. I can hear it now. Max deserves the trophy. Lewis already has 7. Max was leading the series until Lewis and Mercedes won three races in a row and poor Max needs help. It’s not fair that he has to compete for the WHOLE season. We should just give it to him……

Forget the fact that Lewis earned his places this season. He earned the right to finish the race under the rules. Mercedes and Red Bull raced under the same rules and guidelines supposedly. Why adjust the rules on the last lap of the season…….?

Even though I know that this decision was based more on money than skin color, I CANNOT help but to tell Michael Masi how this looks to people of color who follow F1. Michael Masi I don’t know if you are familiar with the terms “white privilege” or “double standard” or “prejudice”. When people of color have to live by different rules and then speak out about it they are almost always criticized. Black people have delt with this unfortunate situation in all aspects of life for far too long and I know that you are aware of this. Yet, you still decided to change the course of F1 history by denying Lewis Hamilton his rightful place as the only 8-time champion. Shameful. Racist? I don’t know but the optics are not good.

Question: in a game of football would the refs allow a team extra penalty kicks so the fans could get their moneys worth? In golf would the 18th hole be relocated at the end of a live match to close the gap to the leaders? None of these would ever be allowed by legitimate officials of these esteemed sports. Why would Michael Masi do this at the highest level of racing in the world? Why? I really would like to know.

You know karma is funny. Sometimes what is good to you is not necessarily good for you. Max has his title but he did not earn it. That’s a fact. His hollow victory on display for the whole world to see will forever label him a predetermined champion. He will carry this burden his entire career. Other racers will resent him for it. He will spend the rest of his career trying to disprove it, but to no avail. Nothing will save him from it. He has Christian Horner, Red Bull, Honda and Michael Masi to blame.

Max I hope you enjoy your “Participation Trophy”. You all earned it.

Isn’t funny how life can sometimes divert your path? While in most cases this is not desirable, sometimes it may not be all that bad. In other words, it COULD be a good thing…….

I bought my first bass guitar at age 16, but my bass beginnings started five years prior. One day my mom came home from work, sat a box in my lap and said, “This is for you.” I had no idea what was in the oddly shaped box. It was nondescript, brown, L-shaped, light weight and almost as tall as me. My mom always surprised me with unsolicited gifts. Telescopes, microscopes, model rockets, remote controlled jets and cars. So I was anxious to check the contents. “Open it”, she said sternly with an ambiguous smirk, which gave me an odd sense of nervousness. But, cautiously, I obeyed her command.

The box was actually two boxes. To my total surprise and amazement the tall box contained a guitar. The shorter box held what turned out to be an amplifier, which at the time I had no idea what it was. Up to this point the only musical instruments in my household were my grandmother’s air organ and my plastic recorder purchased at school.

My palms watered. My heart raced. I could not move and literally did not know what to do! My mom smiled at me and then left the room. My grandmother laughed and facetiously asked if I knew how to play it. Of course I did not!

I plugged MY guitar into MY amp. Turned up and strummed the strings……….

Some days later I started playing along to the radio. One song stuck out to me but it wasn’t the melody. It was the single low notes. The song “Money” by the O’Jays. Before long I could play it note for note on the low strings. I had no idea I was playing “bass”….

Fast forward a few years. When I decided to pick an instrument to learn I chose the bass for two reasons: one, it is the soul of any ensemble and two, I could learn the fretboard and then apply my knowledge to the guitar. Guess what…….?

The bass called me. I always said I’d learn guitar. Never did. Well, finally, I am dedicating myself to really practice guitar. And to reinforce the process I’m gonna do something I never did with the bass: I’m taking guitar LESSONS! I cannot wait. The last couple of weekends I’ve learned three songs. All easy chord progressions, but beautiful songs nonetheless. “Great Is Your Mercy” by Donnie McClurkin, “Feel Like Making Love” by Roberta Flack and “Best Part” by H.E.R. and Daniel Caeser. Therapy for my spirit and nourishment for my soul. Better late than never……

It’s December. Got a couple of gift ideas for my 2021 “Twenty Five Days Of Christmas” list. Keep you posted.

Hello all. Been a minute since I’ve posted. The Holiday Season is upon us so let me say I hope all is well with you and your respective families and Season’s Greetings to all.

On that note, I cannot ignore the fact that the Holiday Season is oftentimes mentally and emotionally challenging for many of us. We become overwhelmed with expectations of being happy, thankful and giving at a time when many are faced with financial burdens, emotional stress, uncertainty and loneliness.

This reality hit home for me this year. I love the Holidays. Love sharing with my family and friends. Love seeing my family and friends. But this year I had the unfortunate experience of losing a loved one on Thanksgiving. Of all of the days. My youngest sibling, my baby brother, passed away at the onset of the Holidays. My other younger brother held him in his arms as my mother watched on.

One of the reasons why I hadn’t posted in awhile was because I carried the emotional burden of my brother’s deteriorating health and my mother’s unwavering care for him. After his passing my other brother helped to manage his affairs. We were tasked with finding a purpose for his belongings.

An empty closet can hold a lot of meaning. For some it can represent a new beginning. For others it could be another location. For someone else it may show a need or want for something new.

For me one empty closet that I know will forever be a reminder of what brotherhood can and should be. And, despite the empty spot my heart now holds for him, it will also remind me of the grateful opportunity I have to be a “big brother”.

R.I.P. “Hoogis”

Slowly. But surely. The time. Yet near. Not a day. A week. A month. But a year. With a second. A minute. An hour. Or a day. Or a cloud. A raindrop. A shadow. Would you stay?

The time. Goes by. Your life. Carries on. A breath. A kiss. A tear. It is gone. A thought. A love. A dream. A night. The words. The games. The loss. Not quite.

Slowly. But surely. The time. The day. A month. A year. A shadow. Away.

I really don’t know where to begin with this story, so I will start at here.

I love football. I have always loved the game of football. I became a fan of football in 1974 watching Chuck Foreman running for the Minnesota Vikings. I later became a fan of the Dallas Cowboys because of Tony Dorset and Robert new house.

My 1st son was born in 1999. My 2nd son was born in 2001. I had hoped that 1 day they would enjoy playing the game of football as I did as a young kid. Bing a fan of the game for nearly 40 years I was well aware of all of the injuries that were possible playing the game. The 2 that stuck out to me the most were torn acl and concussions.

As a father of 2 young boys I began to become concerned about the safety of football. I wondered if the sports leagues are football from the youth leagues through high school and college were doing enough to ensure safety of the players. This was around 2002.

In anticipation of my children playing I began to study the equipment. I focused on the helmets but I looked at everything from the helmets and shoulder pads to gloves, pants, cleats, everything.

Not being satisfied with the current state of helmet design back in the early 2000s I decided to design my own helmet. I took the then current designs from Shuttle, Bike, Nike and Ridell and started to study those. I searched online and found some independent designers with some early designs of their own from the eighties to study as well. From there I developed my own ideas of what a newer generation safer helmet would look like and one that would eliminate concussions and neck injuries from the game.

I contacted Ridell and I actually got as far as their product development representative but I could not get them to give me a meeting. I also contacted Under Armour as they were from my home state. By the year 2007 it was clear that my children were not going to play the game of football beyond youth leagues so I gave up my quest to try to design a safer football helmet.

A few years sometime between 2010 and 2015 there was a company that came out with the helmet called the X1. I studied that helmet and was encouraged to see that they were headed in the right direction and I tried to rekindle my own interest. However life’s demands took my attention elsewhere and so I no longer focused on trying to design a football helmet.

Fast forward to the year 2021. On a Sunday afternoon I take a ride out on my motorcycle. When I return it’s about 6:40 in the evening. As I walk into my bedroom the television is already turned on and there’s a new segment which I think is on NBC with an anchor person named Kate snow. Lo and behold Kate snow is doing an interview with Mr. Jeff Miller of the NFL and they’re talking about helmet safety. In the segment Jeff Miller is describing a program which started I think he said 5 years ago where the NFL contacted engineers across the nation to get input as to how to design a safer football helmet. I was shocked and stunned and probably a little hurt. I had been looking for an opportunity such as this for a long time but not having an engineering background I don’t know if I would have been included but certainly would like the opportunity to share my design of a football helmet with the NFL, NCAA, the high school coaches football coaches association, anyone who would listen because I certainly believe that my design has some benefit and value.

The program or the initiative that Mr. Jeff Miller of the NFL put together basically chose 3 winners from the group of engineers and those 3 winners would get an opportunity to work on designing the new football helmet. Each of those 3 winners would receive $500000 to assist in designing the helmet and I think that’s a great idea for the NFL. I studied the helmets of the 3 winners and I saw the designs and they are extremely encouraging. As a matter of fact one of the helmets had a very very similar to design idea I had come up with almost 20 years ago. This got me thinking that maybe I was on the right track and that I should rekindle my idea and restart the process of trying to design my own helmet.

To that point I am going to reach out to anyone who will listen to just give me an opportunity to share my design ideas with them about how to design not only a safer football helmet but football equipment across-the-board. I have ideas and designs for shoulder pads, for rib pads, elbow pads, gloves and hand protection, football pants, socks and cleets. All I ask is for anyone, someone please just give me an opportunity to share my design. The 3 new designs are very encouraging but they still don’t offer the level of protection and security that the design that I have come up with will. According to my research the helmets that the 3 current winners of Mr. Jeff Miller’s program are probably about 20 years behind what we can actually come up with using modern technology, modern equipment and manufacturing processes to build the safest helmet possible for today’s athletes and beyond.

I like driving. I like traveling along the roads and highways. Even as a young teenager I would “borrow” my cousins car ( a Datsun B210…..bet you don’t remember those) while she was asleep and drive the local streets with no particular place to go. I’d usually have my two best friends with me.

Once I reached the legal age to drive I was fortunate to have access to my mom’s car. That car took me everywhere. I saw many places and faces courtesy of that Oldsmobile Cutlass “Supreme”. Lol! My two best friends were there for nearly every trip. On one of these trips is where we encountered “the veil”.

It was a warm Saturday night. Steady rain. I had the car. This particular night three of my friends wanted to go to a party in another town about thirty minutes away. Okay let’s go.

We drive out of the community, down a two-lane road. Out onto the main street and onto the highway. Back onto another street and then a dark, unlit two way road. The party was in a community hall behind a commercial plaza . The road leading to it was surrounded by woods and a creek.

We approached the hall facing its back. It was to our left. A sizeable parking lot surrounded the building, but only the front lot had lighting. The rear lot sat between the building to it’s right and woods to it’s left. There were some party goers hanging outside and a few people mingling near the side of the road, seemingly looking into the woods. We looked in the same direction as they did as we got closer to the back of the building.

Then I saw it, I mean her, I mean…….let me explain. Standing about twenty five feet from the edge of the road just near the wooded section was a woman. Yes, I said woman. But not just any woman….She was standing out in the rain. In twelve o’clock midnight darkness. Pointing to the sky. Wearing a wedding dress. A long white nearly opaque veil fell from her face to her chest. She was completely drenched. Stoic face, pointing and looking to the sky.

My friends and I were in disbelief, loudly clamoring about what we just saw, or did not see. So I drove around again after passing her, and she was still there. To the amazement of my bewildered friends I drove around yet a third time, and this time she stared right at us, still motionless otherwise. Still pointing to the sky.

I felt compelled to stop, but trepidation as well as opposition from my fellow riders would not allow me.

We never made it to the party. We told some others about the lady in the veil.

They did not believe us………

But she was there. And so was her veil.

Sunday evenings can be very tricky for me, especially in the fall. The days are shorter and the time seems to move quicker. Add to that the fact that I need a clear calendar between 4 and 8pm on Sundays and you may have some empathy for me.

On this particular Sunday I had plans. I had the house to myself so I looked forward to completing all of the tasks on my self-created list. And I knew that I would finish before that all-too-critical 4pm to 8pm block of time, what I refer to as “The Danger Zone”.

Ahh, The Danger Zone. See, I need my mental energy to be in a certain “space” for Monday morning. To create this “space” I need that four hour block of time to do certain things. If not, my week gets thrown off. I’m in danger of starting my week off on the wrong “mental foot”. Hence the name.

So, today I was supposed to get up at 7. Got up at 9. Was supposed to take a morning ride. Didn’t. Was supposed to cut my grass. Didn’t. Was supposed to practice on electric bass. Guess what? I didn’t. You know what I did?

Woke up at 8:30. Got distracted watching a scary movie called Sandman. It went off at 10. Started watching another scary movie. It went off at noon. Started cooking Sunday dinner. Finished at 3. Watched some football. Done at 4:30. Went for a short ride and put fuel in the bike. Back at 6pm. More football. Game over at 7:30pm.

Oh man not again. Caught in “The Danger Zone”. Nothing done. Except watching scary movies and football, two of my favorite things. As I was going through the guide I noticed that two of my all time favorite movies are on tonight. If, like myself, you get a good laugh out of scary movies you should check these out: “Poltergeist” at 8pm and “Burnt Offerings” at 10pm. Nobody does scary movies like Karen Black did……..

Gonna be a rough Monday morning. It’s October. It’s Sunday. It’s dark and chilly. It’s horror movie and football season.

And I’m in “The Danger Zone”.

October. Sundown. Cool. Calm. Quiet. Solace. Peaceful. Thoughts. Shadows. Still. Close. Solo.

Dark.

Regrets. We humans don’t like to admit to having them. Hopefully you don’t have many, especially ones that you cannot atone for. Me, a have a few….

Lucky enough to see another Fall sunset as I walked along the community trail. As I walked I began to wonder how many sunny days I watched through a window, having never been outside on that particular day. Knowing that it would be impossible to calculate even a reasonably fair guesstimate, I still recalled enough instances that made me regret not enjoying more time outdoors.

From my earliest days I can recall some Saturdays where I spent the entire day inside doing homework and watching college football. Likewise, I remember some summer days where I’d stay indoors until late in the afternoon to avoid the heat and humidity. My grandmother would say, “You need to go outside and let the sunlight into you eyeballs….”.

As a young adult I taught myself how to read music and play electric bass. Many a day after work, after school, weekends, holidays, I spent the entire day inside practicing. Rain, shine, day, night, hot, cold. Not one minute of enjoying all the nature that outdoors has to offer.

As an older adult there were days where I was too busy or too tired to find time to get out of the house. Always something to do, never enough time…..but time makes funny things happen to you as you become an older adult.

Time makes you think about time. Time makes you learn about time. Times makes you respect and appreciate time. One thing I’ve learned: the less time you have the more time you need. Spend it wisely.

Can’t go back in time to retrieve those lost days so I make the most of the current ones. I spend some leisure time outside no matter where I am. Rain, shine, day, night, hot or cold.

And I have no regrets about it.