Celebrating Christ's Resurrection

Today's the day Christians all around the world celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ, when God the Father raised Jesus from death to life, to sit with Him on their throne in Heaven. It's the most profound act in history, worthy of worship and honor. This after Jesus had been brutally put to death on a Roman cross, dying for my sins and the sins of all will accept Him. I am always reminded of the old Charles Wesley hymn:

Love's redeeming work is done. Fought the fight, the battle won. Death in vain forbids Him rise. Christ has opened paradise.

Lives again our glorious King. Where, O death, is now they sting? Once He died our souls to save. Where the victory, O grave?

Soar we now where Christ has led. Following our exalted head. Made like Him, like Him we rise. Ours the cross, the grave, the skies.  

Anna and Caleb worshipped with us this morning at Johnson Ferry. We skipped the long line taking pictures at the cross out front. Sat with the Mayfields.

Back at home Caleb prepared the prime rib. Matthew arrived and blanched the green beans.

W&MC brought the girls.

Anna hid the eggs and Shivy went out to find them. 

A good day.

Sisters

Stay up for UNC/Bama? I watched some before bed. Also the end of Clemson/Arizona. Man those games are starting late: 9:39 pm and some after 10 pm.

Was listening to 680theFan talking about the current state of college sports. Kentucky’s Calipari says he develops good pro teammates who make a lot of money in the NBA, but might have to find a way to pay more NIL money to get players to stay. For so many young players who played travel ball, it was development and playing time that was more important than actually winning games, and that was carrying over into college.

Dimino & Cellini interviewed Kirby Smart, who said they while some parts of being a head coach were getting easier over the years, sure NIL and the transfer portal were more of a challenge. Kirby was careful to say players deserved to be paid, that you couldn’t tell them they can’t drive. UGA has the police come in to talk to the players about drinking & driving fast. The Dawgs are offering safe driving classes to the players. Some of the kids don’t have their driver’s licenses yet. Kirby said his job is to help prepare his players for life after college and football – which includes being a good citizen. Part of that is knowing how to drive in a responsible manner.

Just finished the short novel “Small Things Like These” by Claire Keegan. Connie Morris and Catherine Norman had read it. Now reading Charles Martin’s “The Last Exchange” – pretty good so far.

Currently only 6 emails in my in-box. Still have several projects to do, that will take hours.

Denison: the cargo ship Dali lost power early Tuesday morning and hit Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge. Could such a tragedy happen to other bridges? It already has: a 2018 report cataloged 35 bridge collapses caused by boat strikes in the 55 years between 1960 and 2015. According to federal authorities, over 17,000 US bridges are vulnerable to collapse from a single hit today. 

Five minutes that doomed the Francis Scott Key Bridge (denisonforum.org)

Pop-Tarts Movie

Seinfeld news: Jerry helped write, produce, and starred in his new movie “Unfrosted” about the race to develop the Pop-Tart back in the early 1960’s. A star studded cast, including Hugh Grant as Tony the Tiger. Debuts on May 2 on Netflix.

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://m.economictimes.com/news/international/us/unfrosted-the-pop-tart-story-what-we-know-so-far-about-trailer-plot-cast-director-and-release-date/articleshow/108860410.cms__;!!AE29DT8V!W2mPQepA95pwSENVv0tSTgDmb31C4fYJsZ3UrbKqZARyRrO462WA8E8XYgtJ0xPu9SiJsi5bCZcgUD43Mvk$

Thursday: worked past 6 pm. Tenders, fries, and salad. Besides basketball, we finished the Quarterback show on Netflix and the Pat Mahomes episode of Peyton’s Places. Watched the Wednesday night episode of The Tonight Show, with guest Jerry Seinfeld.

Also saw some of the Cubs@Rangers. Dansby hit .244 last year with 22 home runs. Need to compare that to the Braves Arcia, who made the All Star team last year and makes a ton less. Young guy at work today wore his Yankees jersey. 

Friday night: watched the movie "Accidental Family", filmed in St. Joseph Missouri. Kinda like "While You Were Sleeping" with a guardian angel.

HAROLD REYNOLDS [Wiki Bio] led the AL in stolen bases with 60 in 1987. Rickey Henderson won all the rest. Reynolds starred in football & basketball as well as baseball at Corvallis High School. He was a member of the state championship football team in 1978, graduated in 1979, and was inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame in 1998.  He was also a member of the Corvallis' American Legion Baseball team that won state & regional titles in 1978. Reynolds went to San Diego State University, the same school as Tony Gwynn and Steven Strasburg. Harold is a winner of the Roberto Clemente Award, perhaps the most prestigious in baseball.

80 For Brady

Watched the movie “80 For Brady” with Sally Field, Lily Tomlin, Rita Moreno, Jane Fonda, and Tom Brady. Also Andy Richter and Patton Oswalt. Pretty funny. Based on a true story, the flick incorporates the Patriots Super Bowl comeback against the Falcons.

Wednesday: worked past six. Drove home and fixed two good enchiladas with ground beef, onion, and rice. Later I watched Chicago Med and the Netflix Quarterback show. Had trouble sleeping. Mind kept focusing on work. Should’ve prayed more.

REGGIE JACKSON [SABR Bio] was the first Hall of Famer to play in two perfect games. When OAK teammate Catfish Hunter threw a perfect game on 08-May-1968, Jackson played RF. In 1984, playing for the Angels on the last day of the season, Jackson DH’ed while teammate Mike Witt threw a perfecto at TEX. Jackson played for BAL in 1976. Reggie didn’t win his first Silver Slugger Award until he was 34 years old, winning in 1980 & 1982. He attended college on a football scholarship. His football coach at ASU relented and allowed Jackson to play baseball as well.

Ice Cube has offered Caitlin Clark $5 million to play in ten games.

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://sports.yahoo.com/caitlin-clark-offered-pathbreaking-5m-contract-by-ice-cubes-big3-basketball-league-162604748.html__;!!AE29DT8V!VZWF78ulQmhJ2tPXV1pn64-2Oq00hZndY5IRFglyPelisiaJ4d9xSwL-g5rrPLd8tB7bX_8U4EtViapb4tk$

Reasons to run – besides to lose weight. Lifting weights is a better route to weight loss.

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://medium.com/run-with-intention/5-reasons-why-you-should-run-6889f8ee3e26__;!!AE29DT8V!WYaYtLzALEchg2HvWuhndSq-mG4jQy-YkC0F6v52di1lUoiosmnzk5oEjOvElJaIth4TuaZZKMeyt1VOB_w$

DENISON: why did the Jews reject Jesus? In our “philodoxical” (“love of opinion”) culture where all truth is subjective, what you believe before you read the news probably determines what you think after you read it.

Why was Ronna McDaniel hired then fired by NBC News? (denisonforum.org)

Always good eatin when you have to use a lot of napkins. Man when I used to east at the pizza buffet or Cheeseburger Bobbys, I would go through the napkins.

I have a great stylist, Denise. Hate to call her a barber. I need to visit her on Saturday. Also need to work some.

Working several hours on this project for Chicago. How long does it take to track down 23 items? 23 minutes? 46? 69? No, more. Down to the last four lines.

MY BEEF: some people like to ask how to do something, instead of trying to figure it out or remember how they did it last time. How many times do I have to tell you? Look it up. Impress me. Bear down. Concentrate. Work hard.

TOMORROW: breaking Seinfeld news.

Boring Stories From Work

Ever hear people say “they could make a TV show from what goes on at my office”? Well maybe.

Today coworker Steve was talking about the old days, when he played high school football. One of the young bucks asked if he wore a leather helmet. I chimed in, telling them that I wore a single bar face mask. My helmet didn’t have the air padding of more modern helmets, but was a suspension helmet with straps inside. Young Leo had to look up what I was talking about on the internet.

Coworker Beard announced his retirement today. Ours was the only company he ever worked for, 43 years out of college in Jacksonville, Orlando, Tampa, and Norcross. Beard grew up in Moultre. I told the young bucks that in 1973 my Lanier Poets played for the South Georgia championship against Moultre. Beard was also at that game. Moultre was led by future UGA QB & head coach Ray Goff. Lanier was led by QB Steve Dennis, who later played DE at UGA, then became AD at Troy State. Lanier vs Moultre was decided by the penetration rule. As the game neared its end the men in the stands were trying to determine which team had the edge under the penetration rule. Lanier won.

Another longtime coworker was a student at the school my team played for the 1975 state championship, and he was at the game played down in South Atlanta.

Another boring work story: we’re figuring out that this one particular desk in our office is "cursed”.

(1) Sue sat there, got mad, told off her boss, and quit.  

(2) Darryl sat there until he was put on disability.

(3) Luke sat there until he quit.

(4) Crazy John worked there until he quit.

(5) Vineyard sat there until he quit.

(6) Lowell worked there until he was laid off.

(7) Crazy John was re-hired, and is now suffering through our new computer system.

The big total solar eclipse is coming up on April 8th. The Cleveland Guardians are playing an afternoon game that day. Two other unique celestial events are transpiring as well: a unique comet and a powerful electromagnetic storm. Also lots of earthquakes off the Pacific coast.

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://endtimeheadlines.org/2024/03/3-very-unusual-events-are-transpiring-in-the-heavens-right-now/__;!!AE29DT8V!UR2CJA_rIFUHEe77DyUHSTYssZr4RMaAUsodFOz16txYbuBuGFwRWIC35kw0pr-eIzUaAEQ0BZyl5K40VDQ$

That same night of the eclipse the Braves will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of Hank Aaron’s 715th home run. Would be cool if the Braves wore throwback uniforms that night, though it’s doubtful. If a fan can prove they were at the 715 game in 1974 they’re eligible to receive a free pair of tickets. I sent in a picture of my “I was there” certificate and ticket stub. We’ll see. 

ARTICLE: info on former Hawks GM & part owner Mike Gearon Sr.

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.ajc.com/sports/atlanta-hawks/remembering-the-life-of-former-hawks-gm-part-owner-michael-gearon-sr/UJDSR6CWRRBXDMISKP22KV7H2U/__;!!AE29DT8V!VIO5QPfBLcbSZl1ntZU0Q29cG_i52PdwUagnb-sqDMgRqlGmAZFT8IlwCWLspk1LZnidy_KbEiAOjEjGhio$

ARTICLE: info on former Hawks executive & ABA Commissioner Mike Storen, father of former Lovett Lion Hannah Storm.

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.ajc.com/sports/basketball/mike-storen-former-hawks-general-manager-dies/hKS3KXdweIfyKInVbHIEIO/__;!!AE29DT8V!WytnoUDmjetucUmmm4FBSVdhYB7rgJvkiOYHumYLJy04iBkRBdXNF9O9hjHiHrxsO3swlElDTCTGIff7baM$

Places to visit: US natural phenomena.

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://matadornetwork.com/read/us-natural-phenomena/__;!!AE29DT8V!TAEM0-oHHoF4EB4aB2sB1mkITKhPj5S06gEbpwPo1495zX1BliCVqFPcmxOvWwP8qf965LhM8K7RVIKVrgg$

Tuesday: worked until 6 pm last night. Supper was beef stew. Watched Final Jeopardy, that Quarterback show, The Voice, and some UGA vs Ohio State. Always good to beat the Buckeyes. Despite giving up a late 17-0 run, UGA hung on again and won 79-77 at Ohio State. Georgia will play in New York next. Ceil is getting into the NCAA Tournament a little more, checking out who made the Sweet 16.

Watched some of the new game show Password last night. Not a fan of Jimmy Kimmel but Jimmy Fallon is entertaining (Lang thinks the opposite). The contestants had good personalities as well. One was a Hawaiian girl who had served on an aircraft carrier and is now a firefighter. The other was an older college professor with spunk.

Looks like we are having Easter lunch at our place this year. A&C are attending JFBC with us, and Matthew will join us for lunch. Will may have to work in the ER.

THURMAN MUNSON [SABR Bio] was the first American League catcher to win the Rookie of the Year Award, in 1970. The 1968 NL ROY winner, Johnny Bench, was the only catcher who won previously. He was the third catcher in his franchise to be voted Most Valuable Player: Yankee MVP Yogi Berra (1951, 54, 55); Elston Howard (1963); and Munson (1976). He was a handball champion in college, winning several titles while attending Kent State University.

Hawkeyes Advance

Stay up for the end of Iowa / WVa ? The score was tied with less than a minute to go. Hawkeyes hit their free throws, and won by ten. After the game Caitlin shared the spotlight with two five year seniors playing their last home game: Kate Martin and Gabbie Marshall.

What time do the basketball games start on Thursday ? I guess on Thursday the Braves will start their season opener around 3 pm, right while the afternoon NCAA games are going on.  Seems like the men play Thurs-Sun and the women play Fri-Mon.

LSU’s Angel Reese was called out for her lack of effort on defense in the Lady Tigers’ first two NCAA Tournament games.

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://athlonsports.com/college-basketball/angel-reese-called-out-for-behavior-during-lsu-tournament-game__;!!AE29DT8V!S7jSuDA0GxCe5omP60y498c3pgz5IrlnMaktsUzAyuDRJJyzoR2Z5fJkU2jSKFFgXyDnBcJUbDef_-ZU558$

Back in the glory days of Atlanta Hawks basketball, team president Mike Gearon sat courtside, sometimes next to owner Ted Turner. Gearon, who retired young after making his fortune in real estate, was paid a salary of one dollar per year. His son is now part owner of the team. Team exec Mike Storen was the father of broadcaster Hannah Storm. Gearon always wore the same outfit – khaikis, white dress shirt, navy blazer, and loafers. I need to ask Jeff Hullinger why this was.

I went to at least one Hawks game at Alexander Memorial Coliseum. The bell that would ring whenever Walt Bellamy scored. Lou Hudson and the lime green uniforms – my favorite Hawks uniform of all time. I guess Maravich was there.

CARL YASTRZEMSKI [SABR Bio] is the first former Little League player to be elected to the Hall of Fame. 20 others have made it since. Yaz was voted into the Hall of Fame on the first vote in 1989. Yaz was the 11th baseball player to win the prestigious Hickok Belt, awarded annually to an outstanding professional athlete. He hit ten or more home runs in every full season of his 23 year career. From 1961 through 1965, Yaz racked up 452 HR, only once with a season of HR in single digits, his first one, when hit 7 in 91 games.

Convinced that their QB JaMarcus Russell wasn’t making the effort required from a NFL QB, the Raiders gave Russell blank tapes to see if he was really watching film.

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2804453-david-diehl-raiders-gave-jamarcus-russell-blank-tapes-to-see-if-qb-watched-film__;!!AE29DT8V!QmSOHD7KTvgYAUQL6JyRTphRzQc5nQioCQIYevkS62lOUjFPFRpkO8xt-c5nfNrBajv_EZWmzgGBzaupvOo$

Ended the day with ten emails, but they keep coming, almost one per minute. But still hours of projects to get done.

Monday supper: chicken salad, and leftover Mexican rice.

Netflix Quarterback

Watched the Netflix "documentary" QUARTERBACK, following the 2022 seasons on Patrick Mahomes, Kirk Cousins, and Marcus Mariota. Very interesting. They followed their wives as well. Helped us get to know Cousins, the new Falcon QB. He's a devout Christian. Showed him reading to his son, and praying with him before bed (also praying with teammates and others). Mahomes married his high school sweetheart, and is a Christian as well, praying on the field before each game - though apparently his favorite word starts with a F.

Interesting to see the differing personalities of the three QB's. Wonder if QB personality has something to do with team success. Mahomes is vocal, upbeat, positive, a ball of energy. Cousins is more laid back, but knows he must be more vocal and demonstrative to lead his team to victory. Mariota is even more laid back. His compliments to teammates are almost whispers. At one point Mariota questions whether he wants to keep playing. We watched two more episodes on Sunday night.

Friday: worked until 6 pm. Ceil made homemade pizza.

Saturday: worked from 9-1230. Housework and laundry. Watched Iowa beat Holy Cross. Caitlin and many other players do over-react (and complain) way too much. Probably even worse in the pros. It's had in high school and rec leagues, and even on social media. Officiating basketball (and other sports) ain't easy, especially in this age of slow motion. If all these experts know so much, why ain't they officials (or players) ! Just another symptom of the world we live in today.

Dinner party at the Halls with the Chiles, Chos, and Earharts. Mexican. Had been watching UNC / Michigan State before we left.

Sunday: worked from 9-2. Ceil had a bridal shower. Nap. Leftover pizza. Middle Tennessee put a scare into LSU before the Lady Tigers pulled away.

Organized the garage this weekend, so we are now able to get one car in our 2 car garage again. But still so much heavy furniture blocking the lawnmower, and it's about time to cut the grass. It's always something. My navy car is really showing the yellow pine pollen.

Wendys has singles for a dollar through Wednesday. Doubles for $2.00. Have to use the app, which often has trouble working.

Iowa could meet LSU in the Elite Eight, a rematch of last year's national championship. Winner wouldn't play #1 SC until the championship game. After Saturday's game, Caitlin Clark's father told her that she complained too much. Probably want the number one seeds not complaining against the #16 seed. Caitlin didn't complain about getting hit in the face. GQ Magazine on the Caitlin Clark phenomenon:

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.gq.com/story/caitlin-clark-phenom-playbook__;!!AE29DT8V!S5qxsmT5UI2hJ59GkLggZO0S3np0qFOEKAoh5h3R9qZQkOTYUToyhS2iDPvkbZHWF2iactxjVdrX1rOBJ4w$

They're out there, though I rarely stumble across photos of the Atlanta Flames out in the wild. Goalie Phil Myre. Classic Rangers uniforms as well.

Major leaguers who, since the amateur draft was instituted, skipped the minors & accumulated a WAR in double figures.

Player            Debut       Team  YR   School     WAR

Abbott........08-Apr-1989....CAL....10....Michigan.....19.6

Hooton.......17-Jun-1971....CHC...15....Texas.........35.5

Horner........16-Jun-1978....ATL....10....ASU...........21.8

Incaviglia...08-Apr-1986....TEX....12....OSU...........10.3

Leake.........11-Apr-2010....CIN.....10....ASU...........16.2

Morgan......11-Jun-1978....OAK....22... Valley HS...26.2

Olerud........03-Sep-1989...TOR....17....WSU..........58.2

Ruthven.....17-Apr-1973....PHI......14...Fresno St...18.4

Walling.......07-Sep-1975...OAK....18...Clemson.....12.1

Winfield......19-Jun-1973...SDP.....22...Minn...........64.2

VIDEO: tips on listening.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=i3ku5nx4tMU

DENISON: Helen Lewis noted in the Atlantic that Princess Kate was "bullied into her announcement because the alternative— gossip and conspiracy theories—was worse. The "massive online guessing game" about the reasons Kate was less visible following her abdominal surgery. Some mocked the royal family and questioned Kate's marriage. Many in the press and on social media did not trust what Kensington Palace told the world and felt free to tell her story as it suited them.

DENISON: cultural commentator Jonah Goldberg wrote that we now live in a "philodoxical" rather than a "philosophical" age. "Philodoxy" means "love of opinion," while "philosophy" means "love of wisdom." "We live in a moment where reality is a matter of opinion, where the 'ought' crowds out the 'is,' where opinion is a substitute for what is real." This "will only get worse as more and more of life moves to screens, where images and ideas can be tailored to what we want to see and hear." This should not surprise us in a postmodern culture that has jettisoned objective truth and morality. Since wisdom is the application of truth to life, if we no longer believe in objective truth, we can no longer have wisdom. All truth is now opinion. You and I must beware the similar temptation to substitute our preferences for God's commands. "The fear of the Lᴏʀᴅ is the beginning of wisdom" (Psalm 110:10).

https://www.denisonforum.org/daily-article/kate-middleton-cancer-isis-attack-moscow/?utm_source=ActiveCampaign&utm_medium=email&utm_content=The+latest+on+Kate+Middleton+s+cancer+and+the+ISIS+attack+in+Moscow&utm_campaign=03-25-24+DA+-++The+latest+on+Kate+Middleton+s+cancer

French Toast

I'm not a fan of the Savannah Bananas. They started out as a summer college team, and morphed into "the Harlem Globetrotters of baseball". Or so they say. So I made no effort to go see them play this weekend in Gwinnett. One thing I like about the Bananas is the way they bring back retired players to make appearances as a Banana. Johnny Damon. Bill "The Spaceman" Lee. Yesterday in Gwinnett the Bananas dragged out Jeff Francoeur, who grew up in the county. Frenchy swung at the first pitch and popped out to third. Same old Francoeur.

The Athletic ranked the top 50 starting pitchers. The Braves had three on the list: Chris Sale at 42, Max Fried at 16 (up from an unfair 85th last year), and Spencer Strider ranked second. Yesterday Strider gave up his first run of the spring.

JOHN OLERUD   [SABR Bio] his franchise record for doubles in a season was broken by Carlos Delgado. Olerud doubled 54 times in 1993, leading the majors, the first Blue Jay with more than 50 in a year. Delgado had a great year in 2000, including 57 doubles which led the AL. Olerud played for five teams and his cousin Dale Sveum played for seven. They were in the majors for ten years at the same time, yet they were never teammates. Olerud played for TOR, SEA, NYM, NYY, & BOS, 1989-2005. Sveum played 1986-1999 for MIL, PHI, CHW, OAK, SEA, PIT, & NYY. Olerud’s .363 in 1993 is the best season average for TOR. His .354 in 1998 is the best season average for NYM. Both marks would have been MLB bests, except for two Rockies: Andres Galarraga in ’93 & Larry Walker in ’98. In 1988 Olerud was named collegiate Player of the Year after batting .464 to go with his 15-0 record on the mound as a Washington State Cougar.

ARTICLE: how to boost brain health.

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.insidehook.com/wellness/boost-brain-health__;!!AE29DT8V!RZabs2_kvXhTwqcQYkdOl-RpSgqA_kFC9zocctx3vWsCN1OQhLN7qNrIk2ucS10sbxy42bItEY_yNfFetTQ$

The United Nations is plotting to implement a “global emissions tax” next year, in an effort to make fossil fuels have a similar cost to the more expensive green energy. Will superpowers China and Russia agree to pay their fair share of the tax?

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://endtimeheadlines.org/2024/03/worlds-first-ever-global-emissions-tax-takes-a-step-closer-to-reality/__;!!AE29DT8V!Rdttx5lXkEjQYzhKbWxVdk4gkBns56aiJLTgYP0RIi29ZEF8QJGoANOBXLKrPs2hf-bdWabwHHfdxxQuCbs$

VIDEO: Dollar General uses rampant deception and understaffing as a business model. They’ve had to pay over $20 million in fines for their behavior, but are showing no remorse, and are taking no steps to correct their ways – preying on poor people in rural areas. 

https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uE5THiD-kTk__;!!AE29DT8V!TDcgd8ksqWy8WFgLq2NHhm_ZJbpR3z_4GYYtUXVx4fQg-GDRM2z6uAGvGe51vZMLNIkIgjj-HqYkDjSIRG4$