I have decided that my next computer will be an Apple iBook. I have been thinking about this for about a year now, and it just makes sense. I do not, however, wish to join the Apple "cult" that most Apple owners belong to...LOL. Since my younger brother is a Microsoft drone, and my sister is a Linux geek, I just want to start fights at holiday dinners...LOL.

My game yesterday at Motlow was cancelled. We are supposed to take the youth group to a Nashville Sounds game tonight, but the weather does not look good. I really hope we get to go, but I am not optimistic about it. Oh well.

I hope everyone has a wonderful day. Peace...

Gene Washer has been taking pictures at Rossview Middle School games, and posting them on his website. I stole some of the better ones, and posted them below. LOL.

My game at Motlow tomorrow got moved to Saturday, which I cannot work. Bummer.

Mike Clark and I worked at Rossview tonight, and had tons of fun. You see things in middle school ball that happen nowhere else. LOL. Such as a runner on second trying to steal third, while someone else is already on third. LOL.

I hope everyone has a wonderful night. Peace...

#16 is taking one for the team. Ouch!

During a break in the action, I am pondering the benefits of a nap.

I have no idea why the head coach would be walking around the plate while the batter is up there, but in middle school ball, anything is possible...LOL

Michelle says this is her favorite angle...LOL

Tom Petty tickets go on sale today, so we are heading over to Kroger's to pick up a pair. The concert is July 13, and we are really excited. Also, there is a "major concert announcement" at 5 PM today. All they said yesterday was that the show would be at a "smaller venue" than Starwood, and that the act is "one of the greatest ever". That tells me it's at the Ryman, but I do not know who it could be. Michelle thinks its Bob Dylan, and that seems plausible to me. I am really hoping it's Eric Clapton.

I have a doubleheader starting at 5 tonight, so I will not be able to hear the announcement. Michelle is going to be listening, and she will fill me in later.

My game last night at Portland was really funny. Funny in that I did not have a good game. I missed several strikes, and a balk. Funny thing was that no one complained about anything. Wow. That doesn't happen often. I think it was largely because when an umpire looks like he knows what he is doing, walks on the field with clean shoes and a good uniform, and looks like he has been there before, that will sometimes buy some credibility. I was just glad to get out of there.

I hope everyone has a great day. Peace...

Yesterday, I worked a doubleheader at Columbia State. I had the plate the first game, and in the second inning, I got hit square in the face with a 92-mph fastball. The catcher called a curveball, but the pitcher got it wrong, and the catcher did not have time to react, so it me right between the eyes. I was basically knocked out, although I never went down. I was dizzy for a long time after that, and have not been quite right since. The rest of the day yesterday is kind of a blur. I forgot the count once, and let a guy stay at the plate with 4 balls. On the fifth ball, he decided to mosey on down to first. This morning, I woke up in a cold sweat thinking I needed a sub for a middle school game tonight at Rossview. The only problems with that were 1) There is no game at Rossview tonight and, 2) I originally had a game tonight, but I lined up a sub almost two weeks ago. Jeez. A while later, I realized I am double-booked for tomorrow. Which is not much of a problem because it is supposed to rain like crazy, so I don't think anyone is going to play anyhow. Just in case, I am lining up a sub for one of the assignments.

I took Michelle to the doctor in Murfreesboro early this morning. She made an appointment to get her tonsils taken out. They have been bothering her for the past several days, and at one point were bleeding. So, they must go. Every time we get one medical bill paid off, it seems something else comes up. Jeez, will it ever end? I dunno. I just want her to fell well.

On the way back, we were talking about the upcoming weekend. I did not have any games scheduled, so she proposed that we go to Tullahoma and spend the weekend with her parents. That way, she could work on invitations while I do some stuff with her car. As soon as the words "it might be nice to have a weekend off" left my lips, I suddenly got the urge to call the guy who assigns my high school games to see if he had anything available. Later, when Michelle was getting something from her room and I was waiting in the car, he called back. When she got to the car, I had the calendar out and was going full speed. When it was all over, I picked up a doubleheader in Macon County on Friday, a single game at Pope John Paul II Saturday morning, and a doubleheader at Portland Saturday afternoon. 4 games added to the docket, just like that. Michelle accused me of doing anything I could to avoid having to spend the weekend with her mother. I am not sure if I ever denied that accusation...LOL. I just told her that I was working hard for the family, trying to make a few bucks. The I got her to take me to lunch for Mexican food. LOL. Anything I can do for a free meal.

Tomorrow, I have a game at Portland, so it will be a little weird to go there twice in a few days. I am back at Columbia St. next Monday, so that will be weird too. Normally, an umpire does not like to see the same school too often, but sometimes that is just how it works out.

Tonight, we have church, so we are excited. Tonight is the last night of the Wednesday night program for this semester. We will continue meeting on our own on Wednesdays after tonight.

I hop everyone has a great day. Peace...

Michelle and I saw several interesting things while we were in Louisville this weekend.

First, there is either a topless bar or an adult bookstore on almost every corner. Apparently, smut is big business there. On one corner, we saw a topless bar. Next door to the topless bar was the county's Board of Education. Next door to the BOA was an elementary school. Next door to that was a high school. Jeez.

Second, the students at Bellarmine University are allowed to drink on campus. There were at least 100-200 students at the game, and nearly all of them were openly drinking. Most of them were visibly drunk. Wow. Some of the guys hanging out on the first base side noticed that my Gatorade bottle was getting empty, and they offered me beer about 4-5 times throughout the game. Wow. It was all just insane.

We came to the conclusion that there are apparently no rules in Louisville regarding moral conduct, so we eliminate all Louisville colleges from the list of possibilities for our children. LOL.

"Life is full of hellos and goodbyes; I'm afraid it's time for goodbye again"--From Billy Joel's "Say Goodbye to Hollywood".

Peace...

I got home from Louisville a little while ago, and found a letter from the University of Memphis in today's mail. I knew that this was my acceptance/rejection letter, so I was nervous before opening it. I was super-glad to see that I was accepted. I was getting really worried, because I had sent in my application months ago, and had not heard anything. Wow! Cool! I am really excited about Memphis!!

I was in Louisville today for a conference doubleheader at Bellarmine University. Michelle came along, and we had a great time. The games were not too hard, although my plate game went 10 or 11 innings. The scoreboard did not go above 9, so I lost count. I think it was 10. Anyway, it was good to finally get back home. Louisville is a long way to drive.

Tomorrow, we have worship in the morning, and round two of marital counseling after lunch.

Monday, I have a game at Vol State, and Tuesday, a game at Columbia State. It promises to be a busy week.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. Peace...

I guess I must have hexed myself yesterday when I wrote about how I have not had too many rainouts this year. As I wrote that, it was 75 degrees and sunny outside. By yesterday afternoon, it was raining buckets, so my games last night were cancelled. My games today were also rained out. LOL. One day I will learn to keep my mouth shut. Of course, the logician in me realizes that this is a fallacious argument of the "false cause" variety. LOL. I just wish it would stop raining.

I hope everyone has a wonderful day. Peace...

My games Saturday at Kentucky Wesleyan went real well; I was glad I didn't screw anything up this time. This Saturday, I have a doubleheader at Bellamine, a Catholic school in Louisville. In fact, last night Michelle and I were looking at my upcoming schedule, and I have baseball every night from now until April 23, except for Sundays and Wednesdays. I will be busy. And tired. Of course, some of those games will be rained out, but hopefully, not too many. This has been a pretty good year so far in the rain department, as I have had a few rainouts, but not too many.

Today is the funeral for Sharon Roden, the mother of one of my youth. She had cancer for several years, and last week took a turn for the worse. She passed away on Friday. It's not fair to die so young, but life often is not fair. I was asked to read some scripture during the service, which obviously is a great honor. One thing I have trouble adjusting to as a minister is in worship services where I am participating, I have difficulty worshiping myself. I am always worried about being in the right place at the right time, and saying the right thing. I am trying to work on it.

Michelle has lined up a job with a church in Memphis. She will be the Director of Children's ministry there. That position will also require her to preach occasionally when the senior pastor is away. She is really excited about the opportunity. I am just glad that she is willing to support that shiftless fiancee of hers. LOL.

For the past 2 weeks or so, I have been pounding Kent relentlessly with trash talk about how Tiger Woods would win the Masters. Kent's favorite golfer is Phil Mickelson, and Tiger is mine. LOL. I kept sending him text messages with stuff like "my guy is better than your guy", and so on. LOL. We love to have fun with each other like that.

I hope everyone has a great day. Peace...

Last night, I saw what may have been the funniest thing I have ever seen on a baseball field. In the second game, Mike was behind the plate. The area around home plate was really dusty, so much so that if someone breathed, the plate would get covered in dust. Mike called a couple of pitches that went against Rossview, so their fans, in a move straight out of Little League, started chirping for him to clean the plate. So, he did. When he finished, the crowd game him a standing ovation. Absolutely hilarious. I told Mike that if it had been me, I probably would have taken my plate brush and thrown it into the crowd, to let them know that I would not be cleaning it the rest of the night. LOL. That just shows Mike is probably a better person than I am. I know he is a better umpire.

Today, I am going to try to fix the wipers on my truck. I also am going to put new brake pads on it. Yay.

I hope everyone has a wonderful day. Peace...

I am absolutely wasted this morning. I could hardly get out of bed this morning, my legs are so tired. I remember the days when I could umpire 6 games in one day, and keep on trucking the rest of the week. No more. Now, anything more than 2-3 days in a row, and my legs are jelly. I guess I am getting old.

I started a new book last week, called "God's Politics". It is about how politicians on both sides of the aisle use religion to their benefit. Obviously, the Republicans have a stranglehold on religion at this time. I heard Bill Clinton use a line out of the book the other day--that was hilarious. I am really loving the book so far.

I hope everyone has a wonderful day. Peace...

My weekend series at Kentucky Wesleyan was certainly eventful. We got up there Friday night in the midst of a torrential downpour, so I doubted if they would play the next day. We delayed the first game two hours, and by that time the field was OK. I was on the bases the first game Saturday, and it was uneventful. I was behind the plate for the second game, and during the 8th inning, I had to eject the coach for the visiting team. A batter for the home team had gotten hit by the pitch, and the coach thought the guy had leaned into the pitch. He got belligerent with me, and when he screamed "chicken-shit!!), he had to go. Oh well.

It got even more exciting Sunday. The coach who got ejected sat out the first game as a suspension. I was on the plate that game, and it went fine. However, in the second game, I really screwed up bad. Jeez. There was a runner on second, so I was in "C" position, behind the mound and to the third base side. The batter hit a long fly ball to dead centerfield, so I moved closer to third to get into position for a possible play there. After that, I can honestly say that I do not know what happened. I must have fallen asleep or passed out. I dunno. The next thing I knew, the runner who started on second was still there, and the batter was standing on first. The first base coach asked if the centerfielder had caught the ball, or if he had dropped it. I said, "Yeah", not knowing what he had done. So, the batter stayed on first. That sent the defense (visiting team) into a frenzy. The second baseman went nuts, and told me that his "coach would straighten me out". I told him that if he opened his mouth again, I would straighten HIM out. Anyway, the coach (same guy that I ejected the night before) comes flying towards me in a furious rage. I listened to his argument, still not knowing what had happened, or how I was going to fix the situation. After he lost his steam, I asked him if he wanted me to ask my partner for help. He said yes. So, I went to my partner, and he had no clue either. It wasn't his responsibility, his responsibility was to make sure the runner on second did not leave too early, so he wasn't looking for the catch. I told him that I had a gut feeling that the guy must have caught the ball, then dropped it when he was trying to throw it back in. Otherwise, the runner on second would have run to third without tagging up. He said, "whadda ya wanna do?". I told him that if we changed the call, it would look like he had changed it, and that the offensive team's coach would come after him, and that I did not want to do that to him. He said it was OK, he could handle it. I still wasn't sure that I wanted to do that to him, but I knew we had to get the call right. Even if I didn't know hat the right call actually was. Going on my gut feeling, I changed the call. As expected, the other coach went after my partner. He didn't stay on him for too long, thankfully. I still do not know what I was doing on that play. Maybe I looked away too quickly--I dunno. Anyway, things settled down, and the rest of the game went without incident. Only later did I find out that Michelle, who was in the stands, got into a bit of a confrontation with some of the fans. They were giving me a hard time, and rightfully so. But she doesn't stand for that, so she let them know they needed to put a lid on it. LOL. She ended up stomping out of the ballpark. Jeez. I gotta teach her that razzing the ump is part of the game. LOL. I appreciate her sticking up for me, though. LOL.

Wow. So, the weekend was certainly not un-eventful. In all of my years of umpiring, I do not think I have ever screwed up something as bad as that. I was embarrassed. I was just glad that I was able to get refocused, to increase my intensity, and to get through the rest of the game without messing anything else up.

I got home last night to find several voice mails and emails, all concerning baseball. I spent probably two hours on the phone, getting stuff worked out. I picked up two high school games this week, and another college conference doubleheader on Saturday. As it turns out, I will be at Kentucky Wesleyan again. They may get tired of seeing me. LOL. Anyway, one of the high school games I picked up was tonight in Springfield. I must say that after yesterday's debacle, I worked one of the best games I have ever worked in my life. My intensity has never been higher. I knew going into it that I was better than what I showed Sunday, and I was going to prove it to myself. If I can't do better than what I did Sunday, I should quit. That was ridiculous. I am glad that I am past it--my next game is tomorrow.

Today, I finished reading my book about the Pharisees' guide to holiness. It was a great reminder of how we often put up barriers to the grace of Christ. We just need to keep it simple. Remember that Christ died for our sins, and that as long as we believe that, we will be fine. I remembered an old joke about the goings-on at the Pearly Gates. Imagine St. Peter there at his desk, with Heaven's roll book in front of him. Paul comes into the office complaining that there are too many people inside, and looks at the roll book. Indeed, he concludes, there are way too many people inside than in the book. He tells Peter to investigate what is going on, and to file his report by Friday. So, Friday comes and Paul is demanding answers. Peter says, "It's that guy Jesus again, letting people in through the back gate!". LOL. When I first heard this, I pictured Jesus hiding in the bushes by the back fence, whispering, "Psst. Hey, you. I can help you. Salvation lies within here. Jump onboard. Come on in." LOL.

The auction for my laptop ended without meeting the minimum price, so I have decided to sell it to the woman that Michelle nannies for. She has agreed to give me the minimum I was asking for, so that is good. I am going to reload the OS and the other software back onto it. I hope she enjoys it. I will be getting a new one after the wedding, so I am going to start shopping. Actually, I already have. LOL.

Saturday, during my games, Pope John Paul II passed away. There is not much I can say that has not already been said, so let me say this: I think the fact that Terry Schiavo and the Pope passed away within a few days of each other was no coincidence. I think there is a message here. The message is that we as Americans no longer appreciate life as much as we may have. A lot of people talk about dying with dignity, but there is no dignity in starving to death. I am not in a position to judge, but I will say that it is my opinion that some people with have to answer for their actions in this situation. "What you have done to the least of me, you have done to me" is maybe the most important verse in the New Testament. It is the entire ministry of Christ in one sentence. Terry Schiavo was among the least of us, as she could not defend herself against her muderous, adulterer husband. The whole thing was despicable, and makes me want to puke. That is all I will say about it.



I join all those mourning the loss of the Pope, and I pray that the next Pope will continue this Pope's mission of mercy, peace, and reconciliation.


I hope everyone has a great night. Peace...

The Ebay auction for my laptop ends tonight. If you would like to check it out, click on this link. Right now, there are 19 watchers, so that bodes well.

I am leaving in a while for my weekend conference series at Kentucky Wesleyan. I am working with guys that I have worked with before, and that I have confidence in. So, I am excited. Things should go well. If it will stop raining, that is.

I hope everyone has a great weekend. Peace...