Philles Fan Got What He Deserved, Right? Right?...

There has been a lot of wringing of hands about how the idiot fan in Philadelphia was treated for running on the field during a recent Phillies game. There are a surprising amount of cries of excessive force and brutality.

What a load of crap.

Maybe I'm out of touch, but one of the first lessons I learned was that your actions have consequences, and that if you act like an idiot, you should fully expect to have someone hand your ass to you. Unfortunately the world has changed, and that rule doesn't apply anymore. Don't want to pay your mortgage? Just walk away. Feel the need to mouth off to a teacher, cop, or other authority figure? Do it, man, it's your First Amendment right. Don't feel like paying your taxes? Offer up a lame excuse and get selected as the United States Secretary of the Treasury.

This all boils down to the religion of "the celebration of me." And it is getting worse. Sorry, but if you're interrupting my ball game, I won't be cheering you. I'll be yelling for them to taser you good and haul your butt to jail.

But, sadly, my voice is becoming a minority one.

Nick Punto Watch - The Tuesday Puntometer

It is time to give credit where credit is due. Nicky is batting .250, and has played some excellent defense since coming back from his groin in-jur-ry. Time to order those Punto jerseys.

With Harris unable to take candy from a baby the job away (he's currently batting a Punto-like .200), Nicky has 3rd base locked up for a while. However, after Mauer comes back, Punto better worry about Wilson Ramos' ability to play the hot corner.

Minnesota Turkey Hunting - Bad Luck, Good Weekend

The Yellow Dog Patrol headed up to our camp this past weekend as we were lucky enough to be drawn for turkey permits. With no time to scout we went in blind, hoping that birds we had seen previously last fall and earlier were still around.

Uh, no such luck.

Despite the lack of turkeys, we did enjoy a weekend outdoors. Wildlife was everywhere, with pheasants, ducks, and geese in full mating rituals (if not already on the nest), coyotes sneaking up on our turkey decoys (but not getting close enough to shoot - wily buggers), and deer herded up in the woods. In fact, the only Minnesota game animal that we didn't see in huge abundance this weekend was the elusive wild turkey.

While our quarry was sparse, we didn't let that hamper a good weekend. We spent time with watching baseball, plinking with hand guns, throwing clay targets, romping with yellow dogs, catching a nap, eating junk food, and otherwise just being guys. I also got treated to this sunrise.

So, yeah, you could say the hunting wasn't that good. But my weekend sure was.

Another Abuse Case at "Good Samaritan"

As stated here earlier, there are problems at Good Samaritan. The StarTribune now reports yet another case of horrific abuse.

If you have a loved one at one of their facilities, I'd watch them extremely close. It is obvious to me that they have endemic issues on their hiring, training and vetting process.

By the way, during the last episode earlier this month, I reached out to their CEO, both electronically and via phone, to express my concern. I'm still waiting to hear something.

Given the latest, it appears he's not been busy cleaning up the mess in his organization...

Target Field: Visitors' Locker Room, Dugout, and Field

Our Alumni Association for St. John's University had an event last night at the new Target Field. For a small donation to the Alumni Fund we were able to get a tour, a couple of beers, and some typical ballpark fare while being able to watch the Twins choke one away at Detroit on the big screen and assorted TVs. Part of the tour got us into the visitors' locker room.



We were then able to get on the field. While we were prohibited from walking on the grass, we still got a really good look at the field from the players' perspectives.



The stadium is quite incredible, and I can't wait to finally go to a game.

Jimmy Clausen and the NFL Draft Debacle

So why did Jimmy Clausen fall to the 48th pick overall, after having been rated as high as the 4th best player available in the draft by some?

Simple- leadership.

Clausen is an incredibly talented quarterback, and the statistics he was able to amass cannot be argued. He played in a pro-style offense that is perfectly suited for someone looking to ultimately play on Sundays. However, his teams could not win. His coach was consistently on the hot seat and was ultimately fired. He left the program early in the height of its turmoil to cash a check. And at the end of the day, those intangibles add up to something. This was really made clear to me in a post game interview after their senior day loss to Uconn. Nothing in his responses had anything to do with stepping up and being a leader. He was just another one of those players that day that watched the loss happen, and then, oh well, what are you going to do?

Life is filled with tons of examples where the best talent in the world doesn’t win, and marginal talent does. Usually the tipping point is leadership. That’s why Jimmy will hold a clipboard for a couple of years, and then venture off to see how life really works.

Enterprise Luxury Upgrade - Woot!

When we arrived at the Enterprise car rental and I’d checked in, I knew there was something wrong. We were first in line, yet three others behind us received their cars and were out the door. Finally our guy came clean and said that they were having a tough time in finding the convertible that I had reserved.

Typically in situations like this I try to be a decent human being. I’ve seen people throw fits, and know that folks who work in such industries have to put up with that garbage just about every day. We had nowhere to be, and the convertible was not a requirement, so we just chilled out and let the chips fall. Through it all, they commented over and over how much they appreciated our patience and how much they regretted the situation. 

Well, the chips ultimately fell, and did in our direction. We were set up with this Cadillac SRX here, with the double moon roof (damn near a convertible),the sport transmission (fast!), and pretty much all of the other goodies. All done at the same price as what I had originally reserved.

Now, we may have got the same deal had I decided to have a tirade. But by the time I left Enterprise, they were smiling, as were we. That’s kind of what life should be all about.

C.P. and San Antonio Pride

The one thing that has struck us on this trip are the friendly people of San Antonio. Not fake friendly; a real, genuine “glad you’re here,” attitude. Literally everyone wants to know where we’re from (it must be the Fargo accent) and what we’re doing in town. Everyone has a tip to make our trip easier. Every “thank you,” is met with a sincere and friendly “you’re welcome.” The people of San Antonio have really made this trip for us.

We met C.P. here in the bike shop, and later shared a beer with him in the Blue Star Brewing Company bar. C.P. started dropping rhymes on us from his open mic night exploits, and a favorite was one about San Antonio itself. “R” rated, so keep it away from the kiddos, but entertaining as heck.

Enjoy.