Debate Unwatchable

We love our politics here at YDP.   Unfortunately, this election cycle has been a challenge.  The two candidates that have been selected for president are the most repugnant that we've every been provided.  Neither is qualified or capable, and both have massive personal flaws.  

As the debate kicked off, my wife and I settled in to watch.  We lasted less than five minutes.  What we witnessed was unwatchable.  We watched one candidate avoid the question asked and move into scripted talking points.  We watched another barely able to put together a cogent thought.  

It was brutal.  And it was the first five minutes.

We flipped to the NFL game, just like, I suspect, most of America.

When the Green Bay Packers are a better choice than a presidential debate, we're screwed.

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.

Wisconsin Leads Nation in Binge Drinking

In a recent study performed by 24/7 Wall Street, the top metro areas for binge drinking were identified across the US.  To identify the U.S. cities with the highest and lowest excessive drinking rates, the group reviewed the percentage of adults who report binge or heavy drinking across a total of 381 metro areas.

Here are the top 10:

Appleton, WI
Oshkosh-Neenah, WI
Green Bay, WI
Madison, WI
Fargo, ND
La Crosse, WI
Fon Du Lac, WI
Ames, IA
Eau Claire, WI

Mankato, MN

The top three are within 60 miles of each other in the Fox Valley of NE Wisconsin.  That's a lot of schweel in one small area.

Considering I work in Appleton and live in Green Bay, there's a whole lot of drinking going on.

I wonder if they conducted this study after the Packers got knocked out of the playoffs?  That'd explain a lot...

Six Reasons Packers Choke Away Shot at Super Bowl

Here in the belly of the beast, there is nothing but depression and attempts at justification for the Packer's loss on Sunday at Seattle.  There's a lot of "oh, we played so great," and "what a great game," and "so proud of the team" that it makes me want to puke.  Indeed, the team played extremely well - certainly good enough to win - but a number of individual efforts cost them a game that they absolutely had in hand.

Here are the ways the Packer's choked:

1. In Seattle's first possession, Ha Ha Clinton-Dix picks off an errant Russel Wilson pass and returns it all the way to the Seahawk's 4.  First and goal at the 4 - simply give the ball to Eddie Lacy four times if needed and walk away with seven points.  Unfortunately, DT Mike Daniels gets called for taunting (nice discipline), thus making it first and ten at the 19, not the 4
2. Despite Daniels' idiot play, Green Bay gets the ball to Seattle's 1 yard line with three downs to go.  They fail to stick it in on second and third down, and opt to kick the field goal on fourth down.  Had they gone for it and scored, they would have won the game
3. Seattle turns the ball over on the subsequent kick off, and again the Packers drive to the Seahawk's 1 yard line on 4th down.  Again, they opt to kick the field goal, and again had they gone for it and scored, they would have won the game.  Two times at the 1 yard line and either time a TD would have won it.  Both times the team chose to limp away with three points in the most hostile environment in the NFL
4. With 5:13 left in the game and the Packers up by two touchdowns, Burnett intercepts Russel Wilson at the Green Bay 39.  Despite having a ton of open field around him, Burnett runs about four yards and then falls to the ground, assuming that his interception has iced the game, and that any additional field position was worthless.  He couldn't have been more wrong, as Green Bay went three-and-out, and punted to the Seattle 31.
5. After Seattle's drive and score, everyone and their brother knew they'd onside kick, and indeed that is exactly what took place.  The ball literally hits Packer's TE Brandon Bostick in the face (see above), he fails to control the ball, and Seattle takes over, needing a touchdown with 2:09 and one time out left.
6. Of course Seattle scores, and makes the game 19-20 in their favor.  Since an extra point means nothing, and a two point conversion would mean that the Packers could only tie with a successful field goal in the remaining 1:25, the Seahawks go for two.  On the play, Wilson scrambled for his life, and ended up tossing the ball up for grabs in desperation.  Ha Ha Clinton-Dix had about a day and a half to get underneath the sky-ball and make a play.  Instead, he inexplicably misplays the ball and the receiver.  Seattle successful converts.  Hence, what could have been a game-winning field goal for Green Bay on their subsequent drive was reduced to just a game-tying field goal.  In the overtime to break that tie, Seattle won the toss, drove down the field, and scored a game winning TD, sending the Packers' faithful to their alcohol of choice.

The grief of the game is still raw, and the bargaining and justification of the team's performance is occurring at an almost pathetic level.  Yes, the Packers played well.  But when it comes down to it, they cost themselves the game.  They wrapped it up nice and pretty, and even gave Seattle a big, sloppy, girly kiss.  The Seahawks gladly accepted the gift, and will pack their bags for Arizona.

As for Packer Nation?  There's always the memories (fuzzy as they may be), beer to drown the sorrows, and a "we'll get 'em again next year" optimism.

Ah, yes, next year.  Too bad they pissed away this year. 

Tom Wrigglesworth is Aaron Rodgers

An English comic looks remarkably like the Packers' all-pro quarterback.  The attached video (more cute than funny) looks at his interactions with folks in Green Bay, complete with a stop at the famous Pancake Place:

A Drive to New Mexico

At a recent business trip to Pueblo, Colorado, I found myself with some time to kill.  Thus, since I've never been to New Mexico before, and with the border being less than two hours away, I pointed my rental vehicle south to see the sights and to check off another state in my quest to see all 50 states.

Here are some highlights of the trip:

In my life, I've seen signs for deer crossing, duck crossing, and even moose crossing.  Now I can add elk to the list.

The land in northern New Mexico was gorgeous.  Arid, but not quite desert yet, it was beautiful. 

Goodness, I do love mountains.  With hills like these in the east, and the majestic Rockies in the west, it sure made for a pretty drive

I stopped in the first little town I encountered in New Mexico to wet my whistle before heading back to Colorado.  As I sat there enjoying my beer, I looked up to see the Green Bay Packers license plate hanging on the wall.  Seems no matter where I go, even tiny little Raton, New Mexico, the cheesehead nation is present.

*sigh*

Aaron Rodgers Butts In on My Birthday

It was my birthday yesterday, and my wife took me to our favorite restaurant in Green Bay.  The head chef there is the former team chef for the Packers, and he still has quite a following among the players.  I've happened to see a couple of players there over the past few years, but nobody of consequence.

But last night, in the middle of enjoying my fantastic fillet, my wife looks past me and says, "Wow - that guy looks a lot like Aaron Rodgers."  I subtlety turned, viewed what she was seeing, and replied, "That's because it is Aaron Rodgers." 

There, standing at the table directly behind us, stood the NFL Pro Bowler, chatting up the table.  I went back to my steak, but quickly noticed somebody standing at my left elbow.  I turned to see that Rodgers had moved around the table to talk to a woman, and that his butt was a little too close for comfort.  Especially during dinner.

Two thoughts went through my mind: 1) I could totally sack this guy right now (he was smaller in person than we expected), and if I did, I'd totally do the Jared Allen calf-rope sack dance 2) I should stand up and give him the whole "RODGERS!  DISCOUNT DOUBLE-CHECK!" routine.

Recognizing that both would get us kicked out of our favorite restaurant on a permanent basis, and the sack would likely get us killed, I opted for going back to my dinner.

No, it's not the best "brush with greatness" story ever, but then again it is not every day when a Super Bowl MVP backs his booty into a birthday.

Ryan Longwell Retires a Packer

Ryan Longwell, the former Vikings and Packer placekicker, was back in Green Bay yesterday to formally retire from the NFL as a Packer.

A couple of thoughts on this whole situation:

• Looking at his numbers, especially as the 13th leading scorer in NFL history, he likely compiled enough to be a Hall of Famer.  Unfortunately, he does lack a Super Bowl, and that could be his downfall.
• There are two reactions here in town: 1) Longwell is a "trader" (it is AMAZING to read the local boards of Green Bay natives and see how many people can't spell "traitor") and should stay a Viking and 2) the Pack should sign him because Mason Crosby (aka Missin' Crossbar) is so incredibly brutal.
• As the all-time leading scorer for the Packers, he'll eventually be entered into the Packers Hall of Fame at some point.  And hopefully our real estate value will go up at the same time.
• Folks are still ticked off here because, upon leaving town. Longwell made a crack about Green Bay's fine dining being limited to Applebees.  And it cracks me up.  Yes, there are some very good restaurants here, but they total about 3.  Longwell was not far off, and the truth still stings some.

Hats off to a great kicker.  He had a hell of a career, regardless of the jersey.

Packer Family Night

My company is the new title sponsor of Lambeau Field's newest gate, and as part of our sponsorship we were granted a bunch of tickets to the Packers' Family Night.

The event is a bunch of on the field activities which culminates into a offense versus defense scrimmage.  Basically, it's a glorified practice.

Only this practice takes place in front of about 70,000 people:

Our section was in the new 600 and 700 section of Lambeau, which definitely rises above the rest of the stadium (as well as the rest of the city).  Here are some views from the top of 600, but bottom of 700:

Note that this is from the bottom of 700 - the stadium rises another 20 rows or so from there.  Not exactly a good seat for those afraid of heights.

Prior to the expansion, it was accurately said that there weren't any bad seats in Lambeau.  Unfortunately, with the addition of the new nosebleed seats, I think that can no longer be said.  But to the Packer faithful - the same people that came out on a Saturday night to pack a stadium and watch a practice - I doubt there's a care.

And all I could think of when looking up at the 700 section was "I know where they'll plan on putting the Vikings fans..." 

How Long is the Packers Season Ticket Waiting List?

A couple of weeks ago, I put my name on the waiting list for Packers season tickets.

How long is the wait?  Oh, just 106,908 people.  That's all...

On the Packers Season Ticket Waiting List

This week I got around to signing up for the season ticket waiting list for Packers tickets.  While the wait is still massively long, there are two things at play that move it along:

• Lambeau is expanding in 2013, opening up a couple thousand more seats
• The premium seats (many of which are indoors) are just not in that big of demand.  A person I work with was only on the list for three years before her name came up for premium seating.

This doesn't mean I'm changing my allegiances.  Far from it.  I still love my Vikings, and it has been a ball being embedded with the enemy to see their reaction to Greg Jennings committing NFL treason.  No, the reason for the request is that Lambeau is an incredible experience, regardless of who is playing.  If you've not been there, it is bucket list stuff if you are an NFL fan.  Likewise, having the ability to sell/trade tickets would assure us of being loaded for the annual Vikings game.

I have no idea how long we are going to live in Green Bay.  But as long as we're here, we might as well get on the list.   

Even if my intentions are not exactly pure.

The Holidays in Photos

It has been a crazy couple of weeks, full of work, play, travel, and family.  There's a lot to recap, and the best way to do that is likely through the photos of everything:

Work had a "Holiday Sweater" day, and what could be a better solution than a hockey sweater, especially from my beloved Wild.  Bonus points the the red and green as well.

My admin gave me the nice Vikings stocking that got hung on my door.  Very nice.  Unfortunately, she filled it with coal.  I can't wait for performance review time.  Meanwhile, some other person hung the Packers banner directly outside of my office.  If that isn't a hostile work environment, I don't know what is.

The day of our travel back to Minnesota, my team and I hosted one of our company's customers (and 13 of her family and friends) in our company's sky box at Lambeau as part of a sweepstakes win.  Here are some of the best ecommerce talent in the world getting ready for the game in typical Lambeau tailgate fashion

It wouldn't be a visit to Minnesota without seeing some friends.  And having a beer.  Oh, who am I kidding?  The beer was the only "given" of the deal - the buddies just happened to be there...

We made it down to South Carolina to see my side of the family, and immediately headed to the beach.  While it was a little chilly (nice earmuffs, Mom) it beat the heck out of the snow at home.

My brother-in-law had the great idea for a "polar plunge" into the frigid ocean to kick off the new year.  Here is the "before" shot.

Here's the "after"

My wife often complains of me taking all of the covers.  I finally got smart and captured some photographic evidence of reality.  Yes, that lump under all of the blankets on the left is my wife.

We went for lots of walks and saw a lot of the local critters.  Check this dude out (you'll need to click on the picture to enlarge).  It has the body of a grey squirrel but the face of a skunk.  It is a Southern Fox Squirrel.  Big son of a gun, too.

Here we are fishing on New Year's day.  Not a bad way to ring in the New Year.  

We did a lot of other things - dinners, watching a lot of football, and just hanging out.  My wife and I also took a beautiful drive to Pinehurst to meet my uncle and his wife, although I failed to snap any photos.  Not sure what the hell I was thinking.  Both the country, clubhouse, and course were beautiful.

Overall, it was a great trip and a wonderful way to spend the holidays.

2012 Vikings Improbable Season Over

The Vikings' season ended last night on the Frozen Tundra as Joe Webb was unable to muster any kind of quarterback play to take pressure off of the running game.  With an offense that was rendered to one dimension, the Packers won in easy fashion.

But what a season it was!  After winning only 3 games in 2011, the Minnesota Vikings leveraged a fantastic draft, a more seasoned quarterback, and a completely astonishing resurgence of their star running back (one that should garner him the NFL MVP), to make the playoffs.  Even the most biased of Vikings fans could not have predicted the improvement this team made this past year.

While there is still work to do, with the advent of another draft, more work by Ponder, restored health to Percy Harvin, and the acquisition of a potent wide receiver (think Ziggy got a good look at Greg Jennings last night?) this team can no longer be considered the worst of the NFC North.  There is a lot for which Vikings fans can be optimistic.

So congratulations, Vikings.  You did us fans proud.  Especially those of us that reside in the belly of the beast.

We did attend the game last night with friends.  While we arrived at Lambeau late, we did get in a quick tailgate.  Here's the lovely Mrs. YDP and our spread, taken just minutes before she got too close to the heater and burned her coat.  

We're already looking forward to next season.  Skol.

Football Weekend

After last weekend's extended hunting with my southern kin, I took off hunting this weekend to try and get my life back in order.  I got a ton of work done - over 7 hours on Saturday, and another 3 on Sunday - which went a long way to getting me caught up.

But beyond work, there was football.  It started with the Irish paying Pitt in a triple-overtime gut-wrench.   Notre Dame was not prepared to play, made multiple mistakes, and deserved to lose.    In fact, four different times I got off the couch saying,  "It's over," only to be called back to the TV for yet another chance for the Golden Domers to hold on.  It was quite a ride, but the sloppy win cost the Irish one position in their overall ranking.

After that, LSU and Alabama faced off in an excellent game.  I felt LSU did not have as good of a team this year as they have in previous years, and they gave the Crimson Tide all they could handle and then some on Saturday night.  The Tigers are very good this year, and worthy of their ranking.

Who knows, maybe we're looking at a LSU / Notre Dame bowl game.  Cousins, you ready for a road trip?

On Sunday we had tickets to the work suite at Lambeau.  There was a really nice tribute the the military as part of the National Anthem:

This season Lambeau added a Party Deck - akin to the Budweiser Party Deck at Target Field, but not as nice.  The deck can only be accessed by suite and club patrons, and it offered a pretty unique view of the field:

 Here's my lovely wife who watched all of this football with me this weekend:

We left the Packer game early to meet up with our Vikings Fan Club in Green Bay.  Unfortunately, the Purple played poorly.  Despite a monster game by Adrian Peterson, really poor quarterback play killed them again.  It is looking more and more like Ponder is not an NFL quarterback - he lacks field vision and the ability to extend the ball down the field.  While I hate to rebuild AGAIN, it looks to me like we clearly need to do something different at QB.  And, no, Joe Webb is not the answer.

We ended the day, departing from the bar in which we watch the Vikings game, to the smug comments of some sloppy-drunk Packers fans.  Normally, their comments would have elicited a response from me, but by this time it was 6:00PM, and given the Pack had a noon kick off and that these clowns were likely tailgating for three hours prior, it made no sense.  I'm old enough to know not to argue, or fight, with idiots on a nine hour drunk.

I am SO waiting for December 2...

Political Leanings at Lambeau

At last Sunday's game, an unscientific review of the crowd revealed a couple of things:

• Folks at Lambeau know how to schweel
• There is passion for the Packers
• There is equal passion for Romney.  Not as much for Obama.
• Folks really know how to schweel

Wisconsin Leads Nation in Binge Drinking

From the "reporting on the obvious" file, Scientific American released a recent study which shows that Wisconsin is leading the nation in binge drinking. 

They should have never conducted their study the day after a Packers loss....

The Loneliest Place In Green Bay...

...is on the golf course on a Sunday afternoon during football season.

Last weekend I went off solo at our home course, and teed off at 11:58.  I ended my round at 2:03 after playing through a foursome on 6 and a twosome on 15.  It could not have been a nicer time, even through I ended the round with a triple bogey on 18 to give me a final score of 90.

The leaves were turning, and the day was beautiful.  I captured this snapshot of nature's red, white, and blue as I came off of the green on 16:

I hope there are more similar weekends before the snow flies. 

Or before Pack fans get fed up with the play of the local team and go golfing instead of watching football.

Yeah, right

Green Bay Doesn't Get It

With the brutal call to end Monday night's game, the town of Green Bay is in flames.  There are literally signs hanging around town complaining about how the team got robbed.

Lousy, horrible call.  Obvious.

But what is also obvious is that the Packers are not a good football team. 

Some signs:

• The reigning NFL MVP was sacked 8 times in the first half alone, and was hit at least another 6. 
• The offensive line was called out on national television and should be embarrassed.  They looked like boys playing against men. 
• The receivers continue to drop pass after pass.  This has gone beyond Finley and has infected everyone.  Yeah, there were some tough catches, but that the difference between good and bad teams - making plays 
• The vaunted offense put up 223 yards passing.  Yawn.

The bottom line is that the Packers are 1-2 because they have played like a 1-2 team, not because they were victims of a horrible call.

And until this town admits it, they're facing a heck of a lot more heartbreak in the coming weeks.

Cops in Green Bay - Lambeau Field Edition

We attended the Packers game last night, and given that it was the fourth preseason game, we knew the football would be horrible.  Fortunately for us, the night was gorgeous, we had a parking pass for one of the best tailgate lots in Green Bay, and we had a great spread and lots of beer to enjoy.  It was going to be a nice night to tailgate, talk, and just chill out.  Unfortunately, we happened to park next to pervert central.  

 

In a gold-painted converted ambulance, with bras flying from a mast, sat two 50 year old dirty old men that encouraged young women to come into the vehicle and take off their tops.  While I'm down with whatever two consenting adults want to do, when that activity takes place in public, the rules change.  And it just so happened that the show was very public, as the perv-mobile was parked in a main artery that was being used by people to enter the stadium. 

 

Some of those people walking past were little kids. 

 

Not cool.  At all. 

 

As our little tailgate group was being disgusted with the activities in the ambulance,  we started interacting with another tailgate  group next to us and they held the same impression.  And it just so happened that one of them was an off-duty cop.  Hence, one thing leads to another, and lo and behold the cop bike posse shows up and breaks up the fun. 

 

Here's one shot of the action:

 

 

 

Notice the ages of everyone involved.  Creepy. 

 

The ladies got tickets for indecent exposure as the group next to us was taking pictures for evidence.  OK, I know what you're thinking, and before you even go there let me convey that I did indeed see some of the boobies that were on display, and they weren't exactly attractive.  I'm sure those pictures were erased from the camera post haste.  Nasty. 

 

As for team pervert, one guy ended up going to jail - you can see him, in true Cops episode fashion, as shirtless and cuffed on the left:

 

 

The other two had to take down their display and immediately leave the parking lot.  Since they were legally drunk, they couldn't drive the perv-mobile off the lot, and they had to walk home.  That had to be a fun stroll.

 

In the meantime our group got the parking pass number off of the perv-mobile and will be sharing it with the Packers organization.  And that, my friends, is going to be the biggest punishment of all.  The lot in which we tailgated is reserved for season ticket holders.  And when season ticket holders misbehave, the Packers organization takes away the tickets, the packing pass, and anything else and provides them to someone at the top of the 30+ year waiting list. 

 

Those tickets were probably in one of the perverts' family for decades, and were likely passed down from an older relative.  And for the price of exposing some really unattractive breasts to the public, these tickets are gone.  Poof.

 

The good news for team pervert?  Only one of them went to jail.  They got to see girls' boobies.  It was a nice evening for a walk.  And they can put their name on the bottom of list for season tickets.  They'll likely get to the top of the list around 2042, when they're in their 80's.  Which will be nice.  

Bank Run Interrupted by Packers on Kids' Bikes

The Green Bay Packers have had a longstanding tradition of players using the kids' bikes to move back and forth from the locker room to the practice facility in Green Bay.  You can click here for more background on the tradition. 

While I knew of the program, and knew that the Packers were still practicing, I happended to forget both things while driving past Lambeau on my way to the bank during a recent lunch break.

On my way there, a cop hops off the curb, stops traffic, and the parade of players on bikes showed up.  Here's just a taste:



There are a lot of unique things about living in Green Bay.  But being hung up at an intersection for about 10 minutes because of giant men riding on little kids' bikes is among the most unique.