Losing Teddy Bridgewater

In devastating news yesterday, Teddy Bridgewater was lost to the Minnesota Vikings to a catastrophic knee injury.  He'll be out the entire year.

In all of my years as a Vikings fan, this was the one season in which I looked forward to our chances the most.  Even in the Culpepper/Moss/Carter heyday, I never got this excited.  The reasons are many: 

1. Zimmerman is the best coach the Vikes have had since Bud Grant, hands down 
2. The offensive line has been substantially upgraded
3. AP appears in fantastic shape, yet again
4. Our defense is among the best in the league, and is championship caliber
5. A brand new stadium, and with it, a brand new attitude
6. Teddy Bridgewater had another year under his belt in his progression to become a great quarterback

Now, with just two weeks to figure out what they're going to do at quarterback, the Vikings are left scrambling.  

I love Teddy Ballgame.  Smart, talented, nimble, and just didn't make mistakes.  He was getting better and better right before our eyes.  Last Sunday he was a masterful 12 for 16 for 161 yards and a touchdown.  He ripped apart San Diego's #1 defensive unit.  He was poised for a big year - much bigger than most would give him credit for accomplishing.

Now it's over.

I just feel we lost before the season has even started.

Looks like another tough year for the Purple Faithful...

RIP Gene Wilder

This scene is but one example of many similar ones where he verges on overacting, but it just works so damned well.


They just don't make them like Gene Wilder anymore, and our world is a little less interesting and less entertaining because of it.

First Ever Game at US Bank Stadium

I was able to wrangle our tickets from work to attend the first ever game a the new US Bank Stadium, and had a ball.  I took a pair of our friends, as well as my Mom, and I believe a great time was had by all.  We were stationed in the Mystic Lake Club Purple - an all-inclusive club on the second level.  It was nice - not fabulous - but the beer was cold and the food fine.

Speaking of food, my Mom was wavering between the brat and a turkey sandwich, when I piped in, "Get them both!  You don't have to eat both and the price is right."  Just that move alone probably saved us $10 in concession fees.

Here's Mel with Vikings great Matt Blair.  Personally, I think he's more excited to meet her than the other way around:

Club Purple has an exclusive deck, and here's the view.  Beautiful:

Speaking of beautiful, the stadium is a gem:

What a great place to see a football game.  

Colin Kaepernick Goes Batshit Liberal

There's standard liberal, and then there's undiluted, unmitigated, 200 proof, flaming, batshit liberal, and Colin Kaepernick has just crossed that threshold.

Living in a world in which white parents raised him, in a world that pays him more than 99.99999% of the souls that live on it, and in a world where is sole role in life is to play a child's game, Kaepernick can't bring himself to stand for the national anthem because we're so damned racist. 

The San Francisco 49ers?  Supportive!  The NFL? Supportive!

My favorite current football player is the Vikings great Harrison Smith.  No longer.  Now it is anyone that is lined up against Kaepernick on a given Sunday and has a chance to plant this guy.

Don't worry, Colin, there will be a great life for you after football.  Just ask Chris Klewe... 

The Dangers of Catfish Fishing in Louisiana

Yikes!

Saturday Song Share: The Tragically Hip - New Orleans is Sinking

From their last concert, with Gord Downie noticeably sick, but equally noticeably as pure Gord Downie.

Their greatest song:

  

There will never be another...

Why I'm Cheering for LSU

There is more to life than football, and the people of Louisiana need a distraction from that life right now:

St. John's Abby Guesthouse

A couple of weeks ago, while passing through on business, I decided to stay at the guest house at the St. John's Abby:

 The room was spartan, but quite comfortable:

After a really nice night's sleep, I headed out for a 3 mile run to the old chapel and back.  Unfortunately, the black flies were horrible, so I had to run with my head covered by my pulled-up shirt, which made me look like a nun.  Still, the chapel was worth it:

 Breakfast was included, which was some really great coffee, a bowl of granola, and, of course, some toasted Johnnie bread.  This was enjoyed from their outdoor deck:

Overall, it was a peaceful and much needed stay.  I guarantee that I will be back.

Golf at the Olympics

I know that the Olympics are already over and that I'm late to the game with this.  I'm just not an Olympics fan.  Ever since the Cold War ended, I guess it just doesn't seem that interesting anymore.  

Regardless, my brother sent this along, and it does capture golf and Rio in one fell swoop:

Saturday Song Share: Mr. Little Jeans - The Suburbs

I really love the original version of this song, crafted by the great Arcade Fire.  However, as far as covers go, this is simply outstanding:

Why is French Government Covering for Islam?

Via Heatstreet, it has been reported that the French government is covering up atrocities committed by Islamic terrorists in their attack in Bataclan.

What kind of atrocities?  Beheadings.  Gouged-out eyes.  Castration, with the removed testicles placed in the victims' mouths.  Women stabbed in the genitals.  It was so bad that a hardened investigating officer, tears streaming down his face, rushed out of the Bataclan and vomited after seeing the disfigured bodies. 

And yet the French government sits on the details.  

Why, exactly, is that?

Milwaukee and the Real Racists

The hunting of white people in Milwaukee.

I'm not exaggerating:

Blacks hunting down whites in streets of #Milwaukee, the true racists revealed #MilwaukeeUprising #BlackLivesMatter pic.twitter.com/OVs2Y65WeY

— Trent B (@Trentsickle) August 14, 2016

Milwaukee Burns

Saturday night the Milwaukee police shot and killed a man carrying a gun.  Details as of this writing are scant - we don't know if the gun was pointed at the officer or not.  Nobody knows.

No matter.  Folks took to social media and called for riots, and that's exactly what occurred.

We're now to the point that some of us what to get to: where ANY kind of policing is met with calls of racism and acts of violence.  Anarchy is their main goal, and they're becoming more and more successful in delivering it.  

How long will it be before cops simply refuse to do their jobs anymore, because they simply can't?  That's where we're headed folks, and my prediction is that things are going to get a heck of a lot worse before they get better.

In Celebration of 22 Years

Last night Mrs. YDP and I celebrated our 22nd anniversary.

The night prior we were sitting in the biggest suite at Lambeau field, checking out the new ad campaign that my team pulled together.  The campaign manifested itself across physical signage, digital signage, and TV commercials, and is one of my biggest points of pride in my career.

Exactly 22 years prior, two broke young people celebrated their groom's dinner at Ted and Jen's supper club in Staples, Minnesota where I drank warm Old Milwaukee with my buddies.  

Who would have thought?

If you told me back then that in exactly 22 years I'd be living in Green Bay, and showing off a campaign that I built specifically for Lambeau Field, I probably would have punched you in the nose.

Amazing what life throws at us.

Lest anyone doubt my NFL allegiances, here are my bride and I celebrating the new stadium of our beloved Minnesota Vikings:

What a 22 years it has been.  Can wait for more.

I love you, sweetheart.

5k Personal Record

I've been trying to keep up on my running, despite vacation, travel, and incredibly long hours at work.  I guess it must be paying off, as my run this morning was the fastest ever 5k I've run in nearly 130 different runs of that distance:

I know it is not fast by most (nearly all?) running standards, but in my defense there are two pretty steep and long hills on my route that I need to navigate, that they absolutely kill my pace every time I climb them.

Not bad, especially in 92% humidity.

It's nice to nail a PR.  I've not had much to be proud of lately, so I'll take it.

The Best Football Play You'll See All Season

If this doesn't make your day, I can't help you.

Gags the Creepy Green Bay Clown

Some loser here in town is dressing up as a creepy clown and walking around Green Bay in the middle of the night.  Here's a photo:

Local residents have named him "Gags."  Makes sense to me.

This begs a couple of questions:

• How hard up is this guy for attention?
• If somebody perhaps put a cap in our friend Gags here on some dark night, would anyone be surprised?

BTW, as a Johnnie, there's only one Gags in my book:

Where Did Summer Go?

Fall is coming, with a vengeance.

Sure, it is still August, the kids are still off from school, and temps are going to be in the 90's this week.  However, we should have had our first NFL pre-season game last night.  We're making plans for a college football get-together that is just a couple of weeks out.  Likewise, as I type this at 5:30, it's as dark outside as it was at 4:30 a month ago.

Summer is flying by, and it seems like it just got here.  For a guy like me that loves the fall so much, that's OK.  The only problem is that winter is hot on fall's heels, and that lasts for something like 8 months up here.

Sigh.

Saturday Song Share: Foo Fighters - Big Me

They damn near stopped playing this song in concert as when they did, they got pelted by Mentos.

How Opponents Were Treated at the Conventions

Interesting social experiment.  Granted, there is not a lot of data here, and a lot could be accomplished via editing.  However, I think the point that gets made is that there are two different camps, and that they behave quite differently.

I think that is exactly the reason why Trump holds the popularity that he does.

Fruit of the Loom are Putting Josh and Donny Out of Business

When there's no longer a market for the Bro Dryer, then going out of business is the next best step:

Chris Rock on How NOT to Get Your Ass Kicked by the Police

Rated R for language