Celebrating 1,000

I think I've officially flunked blogging. It's been FOREVER since I last made an entry, and it certainly hasn't been because there's been nothing to write about. I'm just a big slacker.

Alas, I thought I'd make an entry in honor of the 1,000th coaching victory of the legendary Pat Head Summitt. The stories of Pat, her players, her driving the van, Tyler, her dog, and the 'coon have all been posted aplenty the past week, so I'm not here to rehash those. Rather, I'm here to reflect on my own memories from the 1,000. :-)

My first memory of idolizing the Lady Vols came when Debbie Hawhee (yes, that was really her name), a standout player at South Greene High School (which would become my alma mater years later), signed to play at Tennessee. I remember taking my first trip to Thompson-Boling Arena with my parents to watch my first Lady Vols game. I'm going to guess I was probably 10 or so. Poor Debbie never saw a lot of floor time in her Lady Vol career, but I was hooked. :-)

My mom and I would usually pin my dad down to take us to one game a season from that point forward, and my next Lady Vol memories were of the Class of 1995. I loved Tiffany Woosley, a guard from Shelbyville, a high school national power in Middle Tennessee. Those were some awesome years for that group, but I'm sad to say they hold the distinction of being one of the few Summitt classes to never win a national title. I also remember being bummed when we went to our one game in 1995, senior day. I was bummed because Tiffany had torn her ACL in a game at Vanderbilt on New Year's Eve, so the closest she came to being on the court for that annual trip was limping to midcourt for her senior day recognition.

My own UT years brought a different perspective as a Lady Vol fan, since I attended classes with some of the players. That was kind of odd after growing up idolizing the players! Alas, my favorite memory from my college years was attending the national championship celebration following the 1998 national title. I also remember standing outside for two hours in the freezing cold one of those four years (can't remember which) to rush to one of the general admission (and thus student ticket) seats for a UConn game. I couldn't get any of my friends or roommates to go to that game, so I sat among total strangers and enjoyed myself all the same. I also remember skipping statistics class one afternoon to get Pat to sign my copy of "Reach for the Summitt" at the UT Book and Supply Store. It should be noted that's the best book I've read outside the scriptures. :-) Oh, and for the record, the accounts of Pat's players sitting in the first three rows of class are true. They really do do it. And, unlike some men's teams that shall remain nameless, that obviously means they actually attend class. ;-)

And finally....my VERY FAVORITE Lady Vol memory was attending my first Final Four last April to see the Lady Vols cut down the nets for the second straight year. What an awesome experience that was!!! Great seat. Great games. Lively pregame pep rallies. If I live to be 400, I don't think I'll ever forget those two days in Tampa.

Assistant to the President Do-Over

Well, the Phil Fulmer assistant to the president saga continues.

Now, UT wants us to believe that Phil, in fact, had not officially accepted the job, he was only considering it. And he has declined the position. I'm CERTAIN it's mere coincidence that, after the PR backlash, he decided he didn't want to take the cushy $12,500-per-month position, but rather a volunteer gig. Yeah right!

I love my alma mater, but we seem to have a terrible streak of stupid presidents this past decade. This is yet another exhibit in the stupid president gallery.

Can someone check Pat Summitt's calendar and see if there's any way she'd have time to squeeze in UT president along with her coaching duties?

More on "Special Assistant" Fulmer

I don't think I even need to give commentary. I'm simply going to post links to two separate articles that appeared in yesterday's Knoxville News Sentinel.

Specifics of the $6 million buyout

Irate UT Faculty

That first one has inspired me. I think I'm going to perform so poorly on my job that I get fired, then demand that I still be paid my full salary for the next 48 months, while the league also assumes my car payment for that period. It's an ingenious plan, really.

I Need to Find My Christmas Cheer

Probably not a great idea to make a blog entry when I'm cranky, but alas, I got two things to complain about:

1.) I am beyond irked with Brighthouse Networks. OVER them. First, they hijack our DVR a couple of months ago and fill it with software that is crappy at best. Slow. Hard to navigate. Annoying. Those are just a few words I would choose to describe the "upgrade" to our box.

If that weren't enough to put a bee in my bonnet, tonight I get home from work to find that a grand total of about six channels are functioning. All the others are black. I tried to call customer service, but all I get is the obnoxious busy tone. I'm sure they just quit answering the phones after the first dozen or so irate customers. Hey BH, here's a suggestion. If you don't want irate callers, offer decent service!

2.) As I sit her surfing the net since I can only choose between Jeopardy and Dr. Phil at the moment, I run upon a Knoxville News Sentinel article noting that Phil Fulmer has been hired for a three-month stint as "special assistant to the president." OK. I'd be fine with that fact alone. I'm in favor of Fulmer having some official capacity (besides football coach) at UT for years to come.

Herein lies my gripe. This little gig is slated to pay ol' Phil $12,500 per month. ARE YOU SERIOUS?!!! The article alleges that the money is coming from private contributors, but I really don't care. For him to be taking home $12,500 a month when he's already set to collect nearly $7 million to do ABSOLUTELY NOTHING after running our football program into the ground is absolute nonsense.

Go look on the job listings at utk.edu right now. You'll see most every position, including those for which they require or prefer a college degree, pays $10 an hour or less. A well-paid staffer at UT is taking home far less in an entire year than money bags Fulmer will make in just three months as a "special assistant."

Folks, I think that's garbage. Absolute garbage. The real workers on campus are scraping by with part of their annual salary going to pay for a campus parking pass, mind you, and the already filthy-rich Fulmer's making $12,500 a month. That's just wrong.

The older I get, the more I see it's true...the rich really do get richer.

Thanksgiving and a New Era in Tennessee Football

It might be a little odd to combine Thanksgiving and a new Tennessee football coach into a single post, but alas, for the sake of time, I shall.

I'll take Thanksgiving first. I would be remiss if I didn't say how much I enjoyed Thanksgiving this year! I'd had to spend the last two Thanksgivings working Division III soccer, so just having the entire weekend off was a blessing unto itself! I joined Carrie's family in Port Orange Wednesday through Saturday evening. It was a great time, and Carrie's mom prepares one heckuva feast!

With the weather being sunny and mild, we took the boat to Disappearing Island for a picnic on Friday. We wore pants and the wind was chilly enough to prompt jackets when the boat was moving, but it was a beautiful afternoon. The weather was much the same on Saturday, and Carrie had the idea to go to the Ponce Inlet lighthouse, which was fun. The view was spectacular, and heavens knows I needed to climb all those steep steps to work off the loads of food I'd consumed for three days!

So now it's officially on to Christmas season, which is always a fun...and busy... time of the year.

And now, to Lane Kiffin. As most sports fans have likely heard, my alma mater tabbed 33-year-old Kiffin as the next head coach at UT. I really don't have a strong opinion one way or the other at this point. Obviously, I hope he does a stellar job, but we won't know how it will all shake out for at least a couple of years, I imagine.

That stated, I'll tell you one thing I do know: Close-ups of Coach Kiffin on the sidelines will be far more pleasant than those of Coach Fulmer! I mean, the guy's essentially my age, and let's call it as it is, he's not bad to look at! Here's hoping his coaching skills match his face! ;-P

Also speaking of the change in regime in Big Orange Country...I'm glad Phil Fulmer went out with a pair of victories. I was among his critics, but it was great to see him carried off Shields Watkins Field on the shoulders of his players, a win going down as the final note in his lengthy chapter at the helm. Fulmer had some great teams and coached some ultra talented players, and we can only hope we're headed back to those days!

Reflecting on Three Decades

Well, today's the day. I have, indeed, turned the big 3-0. Three decades. That's a long time! Thinking of this milestone has caused me to reflect on some of the biggest events of these first three decades. Things that come to mind, in chronological order:

In 1989, my mom and I became members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. I don't think I fully appreciated the significance of that milestone until I got older. To say it's been a tremendous blessing and had a wonderful impact on shaping the person I am would be a huge understatement.

In May of 1997, I graduated from South Greene High School, the co-valedictorian of my class, no less. I say that not to brag so much as to prove that, if I can do it, anyone can with some effort and determination. I was nowhere near the smartest kid in my class, but I'd guess I put in more work than the other kids.

In August 1997, I began my adventures at the University of Tennessee. I can safely say those were the best years of my life to date. It was also at this time that I met Carrie, my roommate, who shockingly enough, is STILL my roommate! She's been a great friend and confidant, and we've shared some good laughs over a decade. Kelly and Jenny were also part of the good times back in those days, but alas, through it all, the original roommates are still roommates. It would be impossible to list all the memories from those years in one blog.

In May 2001, our fun times in Knoxville came to an end, as we graduated from the College of Communications. Seven years later, I still find myself longing for football Saturdays and having all my meals available at the swipe of a card. I don't, however, miss the busy work and writing research papers! Somehow I managed to be the top graduate in the College of Communications in the Spring 2001 commencement. I'll refer back to my comments about high school graduation to explain that feat. I'm telling you, if I can do it, anyone can!

Just a few days after our graduation, we hit the road to move to Orlando. This was no small move since most everyone who grows up in Greeneville, Tennessee, STAYS in Greeneville, Tennessee! I've missed my family every day since then, but it's proved to be a great decision. I've matured a lot living so far away, and I'm proud of the self-reliance it has fostered. And hey, let's be honest, if you're going to move away from home, Orlando's a pretty cool place to be. :-)

Of course there are a million other things that have happened over the course of three decades, but those are the biggies. Certainly along the way I've met some wonderful people who have been tremendous friends and mentors and played a significant part in my life. I'm grateful for each and every one of you!

I've been remarkably blessed in these first 30 years. God has truly been good to me and my family. Here's hoping my "next 30 years" (as the great philosopher Tim McGraw sings) will go just as well, if not better. I've experienced much, but there's MUCH more to come. I look forward to the journey!

"Free Soccer" Abounds

Growing up in the South, I'm not much of a soccer fan, and I've never made any secret of that fact. However, I have to say, I saw some exciting soccer this weekend at our conference's women's soccer tournament.

A total of five matches comprised the tournament, and all five went into overtime. Four of the five went to double-overtime, with three of those ending in penalty kick shootouts. Kudos to Saint Leo's senior goalkeeper, Lauren Hudson, who not only held her own TWICE against the firing squad, but also converted one of the PKs herself in Sunday's final. That would be the equivalent of sending your pitcher out to take bats in the home run derby. Unreal!

In addition to the thrillers, we were treated to spectacular weather for this weekend's tournament. Beautiful blue skies and sunshine were the backdrop for some exciting games. So, even though I had to watch three soccer matches in two days, and even though the last of those three kept me out of church, all-in-all, I'd say we had a pretty good event.