December 30th, 2009
We are officially twenty four hours away from the end of, what TIME Magazine referred to as "The Worst Decade in History" and "The Decade from Hell." I'd like to take a few minutes with you, my friends and readers, to reflect upon the years that have past and the reality which they have wrought.
The changes in my life have been evident, but the vast majority of those changes are inevitable. Regardless of the age, most children aging from 9 to 19 will experience several of the same things I have experienced over the past ten years. There are several changes and memories, however, that are distinctly 00-ian. TIME discusses how, despite the fact that there was no great Y2K apocalyptic computer meltdown, there might as well have been. Over the past decade, America has witnessed the worst election gaffe in history, 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, two wars, the Virginia Tech massacre, and the greatest financial meltdown since the great depression including the widest-reaching Ponzi scheme in history. The world saw a tsunami in Sumatra, America's actions through Guantanamo Bay, and the destruction created from two wars and North Korea becoming a nuclear threat. The American Dream appears to have shattered... or did it?
I'm not normally an "ends justify the means" kind of guy, but this is my exception. I'd like to take this opportunity to compare where we as a city, state, and nation were ten years ago today.
So where were we on December 29th, 1999? What were we doing?
We were freaking out.
A common theme throughout the 1990's was Americans not knowing what to do with themselves. There were blips of realistic fear, such as Columbine, but they were often fleeting risks and more hype than substance. Nonetheless, Americans weren't used to not having something to fear. After decades of Cold War, the Berlin Wall falls, democracy spreads, and the world seemed relatively quiet to the United States. Sometimes it's the silence that can be deadly, however, and that was the overriding theme that shaped the 1990's. Without the Soviets to fear, many Americans needed to fill that void in their life with something. This led to the introduction of greater fear of our own government, fear of our own kids, and the list goes on and on.
This is what led to the fear of our own computer system failing on January 1st, 2000. While this fear may not have been ultimately justified, it spoke a great deal to the culture of the nineties and where we were as a nation at that moment. The 2000 election was another example of mass fear exacerbating a situation. If Americans would have stayed calm and quiet, Florida would have done a recount and Al Gore would have been President. Instead, the citizens of chaos did what they were best at, with the assistance of the 24 hour news media, and created mass chaos that led the Supreme Court to override the Constitution and Florida's rights as a state and gave the election to George W. Bush.
Consequently, the culture of the nineties led us headfirst into the new millennium under the leadership of a man whose qualifications for the President of the United States may not have been ideal. Instead of the Vice President who helped oversee the greatest economic expansion of the 20th century and scored a 1355 on his SAT, we were handed a C student who scored lower than I did on the SAT and drove an oil company and a baseball team into the ground.
Hold onto your hats, folks, here comes an interesting decade.
Then came 9/11, and everything changed. Now we remembered that there are real things out there to fear, and that we are truly one nation. Afghanistan and Iraq happened and we were, for lack of a better word, shell shocked. This is what shaped the culture of the 2000's.
Suddenly, however, something interesting happened. The nineties "fear everything" mentality was merged with our real fears of terrorism, hurricanes, and financial crises and America was, honestly, not a fun place to live. Some blindly followed their President and others rigorously opposed any efforts Bush made, regardless of intent or consequence. We were torn more politically than any other time in our history, and the animosity that stemmed from the 2008 election evinced that fact. As we progress into the second decade of the 21st century, however, I remain optimistic.
In spite of the negativity of the 2000's, I remain confident that the oh-ten's will be different. Never in our history have we overcome this much adversity in this short amount of time. There's something special about the group of Americans living here today, because no matter where your political allegiances lie, I'm confident that this is the first group of Americans that is truly putting America first across the board. As usual, we have differing opinions as to how to improve our nation, but everyone here today truly loves their country and is learning not to take it for granted.
At the end of the day, the chaos wrought by the new millennium has developed us into a much more sophisticated populace. I'll never forget the election debacle in 2000, the Bush years, 9/11, Katrina, the brawl, the Colts Super Bowl, Reggie's retirement, the Obama campaign, election night 2008, and the list goes on and on, but all of those experiences, both positive and negative, shaped our world into what it is going to be in 2010.
This chapter is over, now time to start writing for 2019.
I look forward to experiencing the next ten years with you, and this is when I'd like to open the conversation to you. What will you remember about this decade? Was it the worst decade ever? Do the ends justify the means? What do you look forward to from 2010-2019?
I love you guys. Live Hard, Laugh Harder.
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Super Implications
Let me preface this blog with the following statement:
I hope and pray that I'm wrong. I'm not going to talk about what I want to happen, I'm going to talk about what is most likely to happen. Also, don't shoot the messenger. I'm not making this up. I'm going based on facts, figures, and the history that will haunt this team just like it will invariably haunt my dreams tonight.
So now, I'll say it.
Goodbye, Super Bowl. Hello 2005 Playoffs.
There, I said it. I'm not upset because we're not perfect anymore. Obviously 16-0 is much less important than a Super Bowl. That goes without saying. I'm not a fan of the naysayers who claim that perfection and a Super Bowl are exclusive events. We could go 19-0 and I wish Caldwell would give the players that chance, but that's not why I'm upset.
I'm not upset about the score, I'm upset about watching Curtis Painter replace the greatest quarterback to ever play the game when we were up five. Then again when we were down three. Then again when we were down six. So on and so forth. If Peyton blew the lead, I'd be disappointed, but he didn't get that chance. Peyton was pulled, and unless we were resting him so he can put in a full game at Buffalo, it's likely that we've seen the last Colts win of the season.
It kills me to say that, but it's not me talking, it's history. Since Peyton was drafted, we've made the playoffs nine times, now ten. Let's let that sink in. In 12 years, we have missed the playoffs twice. Spoiled much? Here's the issue. Nine times we've had the chance to win the Super Bowl, and we're 1-8 in that quest. That's not nearly as bad as it sounds, but I'd argue that we would've won more championships had it not been for our fetish for resting our starters late in the season. Granted, it's conventional wisdom to rest your starters once you have "nothing to play for," but, just like every girlfriend you've ever had, the Colts' high precision offense isn't a light switch that can be turned on and off at your pleasure. You can't rest Peyton and company for one, two, even three weeks and expect them to be able to come out and take on an elite NFL team in a must-win scenario.
Calling our offense high precision and claiming that resting our starters is all hearsay, right? It's just like Pizza Hut calling itself "America's Favorite Pizza," right?
Wrong. This isn't opinion, folks, it's fact.
Pop quiz: When the Colts rested their starters at the end of the regular season, how many playoff games have they won?
Give up?
One.
One playoff game.
In the Peyton Manning era, we're 1-5 when resting our starters at the end of the season.
When we've played our starters through the end of the season, we're 6-3, including a Super Bowl.
So what's stopping us? The fear of our golden boy getting hurt? Peyton Manning?
Pop Quiz: How many meaningful snaps has Peyton Manning missed due to injury in his career?
Give up?
One.
I'd venture a guess that you could break both of Peyton's legs and cut off both of his hands and he'd still be on the field warming up expecting to play. He's not going anywhere. So let's go with the statistics here. Before this season, he had taken 10,691 snaps and missed one due to injury. So assuming that this is the probability of him getting hurt, there's a 1/10,692 chance that Peyton would get injured on any given snap. Theres a 1/6 chance that we'll lose any given game in the playoffs this year if we rest our starters. If we play through, there's a 2/3 chance that we win any given playoff game. That means we are four times as likely to win a playoff game if we play our starters at almost no risk to our starters.
Meaningless game? I say it had Super implications.
I hope and pray that I'm wrong. I'm not going to talk about what I want to happen, I'm going to talk about what is most likely to happen. Also, don't shoot the messenger. I'm not making this up. I'm going based on facts, figures, and the history that will haunt this team just like it will invariably haunt my dreams tonight.
So now, I'll say it.
Goodbye, Super Bowl. Hello 2005 Playoffs.
There, I said it. I'm not upset because we're not perfect anymore. Obviously 16-0 is much less important than a Super Bowl. That goes without saying. I'm not a fan of the naysayers who claim that perfection and a Super Bowl are exclusive events. We could go 19-0 and I wish Caldwell would give the players that chance, but that's not why I'm upset.
I'm not upset about the score, I'm upset about watching Curtis Painter replace the greatest quarterback to ever play the game when we were up five. Then again when we were down three. Then again when we were down six. So on and so forth. If Peyton blew the lead, I'd be disappointed, but he didn't get that chance. Peyton was pulled, and unless we were resting him so he can put in a full game at Buffalo, it's likely that we've seen the last Colts win of the season.
It kills me to say that, but it's not me talking, it's history. Since Peyton was drafted, we've made the playoffs nine times, now ten. Let's let that sink in. In 12 years, we have missed the playoffs twice. Spoiled much? Here's the issue. Nine times we've had the chance to win the Super Bowl, and we're 1-8 in that quest. That's not nearly as bad as it sounds, but I'd argue that we would've won more championships had it not been for our fetish for resting our starters late in the season. Granted, it's conventional wisdom to rest your starters once you have "nothing to play for," but, just like every girlfriend you've ever had, the Colts' high precision offense isn't a light switch that can be turned on and off at your pleasure. You can't rest Peyton and company for one, two, even three weeks and expect them to be able to come out and take on an elite NFL team in a must-win scenario.
Calling our offense high precision and claiming that resting our starters is all hearsay, right? It's just like Pizza Hut calling itself "America's Favorite Pizza," right?
Wrong. This isn't opinion, folks, it's fact.
Pop quiz: When the Colts rested their starters at the end of the regular season, how many playoff games have they won?
Give up?
One.
One playoff game.
In the Peyton Manning era, we're 1-5 when resting our starters at the end of the season.
When we've played our starters through the end of the season, we're 6-3, including a Super Bowl.
So what's stopping us? The fear of our golden boy getting hurt? Peyton Manning?
Pop Quiz: How many meaningful snaps has Peyton Manning missed due to injury in his career?
Give up?
One.
I'd venture a guess that you could break both of Peyton's legs and cut off both of his hands and he'd still be on the field warming up expecting to play. He's not going anywhere. So let's go with the statistics here. Before this season, he had taken 10,691 snaps and missed one due to injury. So assuming that this is the probability of him getting hurt, there's a 1/10,692 chance that Peyton would get injured on any given snap. Theres a 1/6 chance that we'll lose any given game in the playoffs this year if we rest our starters. If we play through, there's a 2/3 chance that we win any given playoff game. That means we are four times as likely to win a playoff game if we play our starters at almost no risk to our starters.
Meaningless game? I say it had Super implications.
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Get to the Point, Larry
Tonight's game against the Hawks proved three things to me.
1. We are in dire need of a point guard.
2. We need a defense.
3. I need to invest in a heavy baseball bat to use on all the fans of us joining the "John Wall Lottery"
We need a point guard who can orchestrate our offense in such a way that our best scorers are getting the ball. We need a point guard who can turn our team's offensive mantra, which has been "let's stand around until someone gets open" into an offense that can effectively exploit the defense and utilize our weapons. We also need our defense to step up. As they mature, Hansbrough and Hibbert will be amazing defenders. They already are pretty good. Danny Granger is a great defender. Dhantay Jones is alright, but our biggest issue is that we have absolutely no one who can defend the opposing guards. This forces our big three off their men on help defense, which invariably will lead to opposition baskets.
This is why I make this plea to Jim O'Brein, Larry Bird, and all Pacers fans.
DO NOT JUMP ON THE JOHN WALL BANDWAGON!
If we needed a point guard who could monopolize our offense, he'd have my vote, but we already have one of those. His name is T.J. Ford. He, too, was a college super star, and he, too, is a miserable point guard. He doesn't struggle because of a lack of skill; he struggles because of his egocentric offensive strategy. He can score, but he cannot provide a decent outlet for our best players to get the ball in scoring position.
What is John Wall? He is a scoring point guard. He cannot survive in an NBA offense. If he wants to be a champion, he needs to switch to a two guard and never look back. Even if he does that, however, John Wall does not belong in Indiana.
So who does? What is the model of a perfect point guard for the Pacers?
Two words.
Mark Jackson.
We need a point guard who can score if needed, but who is a pass first guard who knows how to read a defense and set up Danny, Psycho T, and Roy to score. We need a hard-nosed, cerebral guard who can not only dissect defenses, but who can read the opposing offense and contain their guard play to the point where our bigs can stop the offense.
Why was Reggie so great? Because in every clip you see him make a big shot, he ran off a screen from a big (typically big Dale Davis) and caught a darting pass from the man, Mark Jackson. Mark had low PPG averages and high assists/game, but he was still a superstar in our book, but you don't see those players praised in the age of Lebron. Basketball has seen three distinct phases in our lifetime.
1. The Age of Jordan:
In this age, teamwork was worshiped. While MJ was by far the most famous Bull, he was surrounded by stars. In both the East and West, the top three or four teams every year were stacked at all five positions. One-superstar teams could never survive in this league, but the loss of these teams led a seamless transition to the next phase.
2. The Age of Kobe:
Why is this the age of Kobe as opposed to the third stage? Because despite his recent success, Kobe doesn't exist without a big. This is the age of the tag team. From Kobe and Shaq to Manu and Duncan, this age was dominated by the one-two punch, but then people started dropping off leading us to...
3. The Age of Lebron.
In this league, too many teams rely on one star (Kobe, Lebron, Dwight Howard, etc.) to keep their team successful. I argue that these teams are the weakest of the elite teams in the past twenty years, and I propose that it's time the Pacers lead the charge back to a full roster. Hibbert is on track to be an All-Star center, better than Rik Smits. Danny is the best three that we've seen since Chuck Person. Psycho-T has a the skills of Austin Croshere with the hustle of Jeff Foster.
I like where we're headed, tie us together, give us a pass-first point guard who can utilize our strengths, and I can see us in the Conference championship before too long.
Or so we can only hope...
1. We are in dire need of a point guard.
2. We need a defense.
3. I need to invest in a heavy baseball bat to use on all the fans of us joining the "John Wall Lottery"
We need a point guard who can orchestrate our offense in such a way that our best scorers are getting the ball. We need a point guard who can turn our team's offensive mantra, which has been "let's stand around until someone gets open" into an offense that can effectively exploit the defense and utilize our weapons. We also need our defense to step up. As they mature, Hansbrough and Hibbert will be amazing defenders. They already are pretty good. Danny Granger is a great defender. Dhantay Jones is alright, but our biggest issue is that we have absolutely no one who can defend the opposing guards. This forces our big three off their men on help defense, which invariably will lead to opposition baskets.
This is why I make this plea to Jim O'Brein, Larry Bird, and all Pacers fans.
DO NOT JUMP ON THE JOHN WALL BANDWAGON!
If we needed a point guard who could monopolize our offense, he'd have my vote, but we already have one of those. His name is T.J. Ford. He, too, was a college super star, and he, too, is a miserable point guard. He doesn't struggle because of a lack of skill; he struggles because of his egocentric offensive strategy. He can score, but he cannot provide a decent outlet for our best players to get the ball in scoring position.
What is John Wall? He is a scoring point guard. He cannot survive in an NBA offense. If he wants to be a champion, he needs to switch to a two guard and never look back. Even if he does that, however, John Wall does not belong in Indiana.
So who does? What is the model of a perfect point guard for the Pacers?
Two words.
Mark Jackson.
We need a point guard who can score if needed, but who is a pass first guard who knows how to read a defense and set up Danny, Psycho T, and Roy to score. We need a hard-nosed, cerebral guard who can not only dissect defenses, but who can read the opposing offense and contain their guard play to the point where our bigs can stop the offense.
Why was Reggie so great? Because in every clip you see him make a big shot, he ran off a screen from a big (typically big Dale Davis) and caught a darting pass from the man, Mark Jackson. Mark had low PPG averages and high assists/game, but he was still a superstar in our book, but you don't see those players praised in the age of Lebron. Basketball has seen three distinct phases in our lifetime.
1. The Age of Jordan:
In this age, teamwork was worshiped. While MJ was by far the most famous Bull, he was surrounded by stars. In both the East and West, the top three or four teams every year were stacked at all five positions. One-superstar teams could never survive in this league, but the loss of these teams led a seamless transition to the next phase.
2. The Age of Kobe:
Why is this the age of Kobe as opposed to the third stage? Because despite his recent success, Kobe doesn't exist without a big. This is the age of the tag team. From Kobe and Shaq to Manu and Duncan, this age was dominated by the one-two punch, but then people started dropping off leading us to...
3. The Age of Lebron.
In this league, too many teams rely on one star (Kobe, Lebron, Dwight Howard, etc.) to keep their team successful. I argue that these teams are the weakest of the elite teams in the past twenty years, and I propose that it's time the Pacers lead the charge back to a full roster. Hibbert is on track to be an All-Star center, better than Rik Smits. Danny is the best three that we've seen since Chuck Person. Psycho-T has a the skills of Austin Croshere with the hustle of Jeff Foster.
I like where we're headed, tie us together, give us a pass-first point guard who can utilize our strengths, and I can see us in the Conference championship before too long.
Or so we can only hope...
Friday, December 25, 2009
A Letter to Jim Caldwell.
Dear Coach,
Howdy! Hope all is well! Tell Cheryl and the kids I said "Hi!"
Now down to business.
I've heard some nasty rumors going around that some starters may rest on the offensive side of the football Sunday against the Jets. As a fan who is planning on attending the game, I would like to beseech you, watch yourself, buddy. Your predecessor, Tony Dungy will go down in history as one of the greatest coaches of all time. From his outstandingly consistent record (ninth best in history) to his relaxed demeanor that made him a legend, Tony was always a fantastic coach. I beg you, however, to take this journey with me, Jimmy.
What if he hadn't sabotaged his offense countless times? What if he didn't try to coach so much? Could we, would we, be the best team ever?
Tony's only flaw (and I mean ONLY flaw) was trying to coach Peyton Manning. You know Tony. Just like yourself, he's a defensive guy. You don't want Dwight Freeney playing right now for two reasons.
1. He's nursing injury and should take the next month to get to full strength for the playoffs.
2. His job is to hit people.
Peyton, however, is a different story. Peyton wants his offense starting, and that's what he should get. If we rest Peyton, even for a quarter, we will lose the momentum that we have gained, and we can't afford to do that. We're at 14-0. We've won 23 straight. We are, arguably, the greatest team of this decade.
But, Jimmy, we must remember how much that record means in the end.
Even if we go 16-0, let's remember 2005 (oh god) when we were ousted by the Steelers.
Or what about 2000 when we were upset by the underdog Titans?
But that's not what's scary. What's scary is what will invariably lie around the corner if we travel down the path of greatness. In 2006 when we won the Super Bowl, we were tested, because that's the way it must be. Our last-place defense was forced to stop the Chiefs. Our mediocre run came was forced to outrun the Ravens. We had to exorcise the demons that are the New England Patriots.
Similarly, if we are to go 19-0 and become the iconic team of greatness that we are destined to become, you know who lies around the corner.
Chargers.
Mike Scifres.
LaDanian Tomlinson? Stoppable.
Phillip Rivers? He's okay.
That defense? I've seen worse.
Mike Scifres. Honestly, after watching him pin us inside our five thrice last year and at our one twice, I'm still shitting bricks.
This man is, hands down, the greatest punter to ever play the game of football, and you know that those Chargers are charging and will be ready to knock us off our pedestal. After their recent 8-game win streak with just the Titans and 'Skins ahead, they're dangerous as hell.
Jim, I'd like to take a chance to quote Colin Powell, "You break it, you own it."
If you break Peyton's rhythm, you and you alone will be to blame for the loss. Learn from Tony's mistakes, don't try to coach Peyton. Rest any defensive starters who are hurt, but let Peyton run his offense. I love you, Jimmy. You're the only rookie head coach in history to win your first 14 games, but remember the MVP that got you there. Be smart, Jim, and one day they'll name a trophy after you.
Tell the family Merry Christmas!
Tim Hickle
Howdy! Hope all is well! Tell Cheryl and the kids I said "Hi!"
Now down to business.
I've heard some nasty rumors going around that some starters may rest on the offensive side of the football Sunday against the Jets. As a fan who is planning on attending the game, I would like to beseech you, watch yourself, buddy. Your predecessor, Tony Dungy will go down in history as one of the greatest coaches of all time. From his outstandingly consistent record (ninth best in history) to his relaxed demeanor that made him a legend, Tony was always a fantastic coach. I beg you, however, to take this journey with me, Jimmy.
What if he hadn't sabotaged his offense countless times? What if he didn't try to coach so much? Could we, would we, be the best team ever?
Tony's only flaw (and I mean ONLY flaw) was trying to coach Peyton Manning. You know Tony. Just like yourself, he's a defensive guy. You don't want Dwight Freeney playing right now for two reasons.
1. He's nursing injury and should take the next month to get to full strength for the playoffs.
2. His job is to hit people.
Peyton, however, is a different story. Peyton wants his offense starting, and that's what he should get. If we rest Peyton, even for a quarter, we will lose the momentum that we have gained, and we can't afford to do that. We're at 14-0. We've won 23 straight. We are, arguably, the greatest team of this decade.
But, Jimmy, we must remember how much that record means in the end.
Even if we go 16-0, let's remember 2005 (oh god) when we were ousted by the Steelers.
Or what about 2000 when we were upset by the underdog Titans?
But that's not what's scary. What's scary is what will invariably lie around the corner if we travel down the path of greatness. In 2006 when we won the Super Bowl, we were tested, because that's the way it must be. Our last-place defense was forced to stop the Chiefs. Our mediocre run came was forced to outrun the Ravens. We had to exorcise the demons that are the New England Patriots.
Similarly, if we are to go 19-0 and become the iconic team of greatness that we are destined to become, you know who lies around the corner.
Chargers.
Mike Scifres.
LaDanian Tomlinson? Stoppable.
Phillip Rivers? He's okay.
That defense? I've seen worse.
Mike Scifres. Honestly, after watching him pin us inside our five thrice last year and at our one twice, I'm still shitting bricks.
This man is, hands down, the greatest punter to ever play the game of football, and you know that those Chargers are charging and will be ready to knock us off our pedestal. After their recent 8-game win streak with just the Titans and 'Skins ahead, they're dangerous as hell.
Jim, I'd like to take a chance to quote Colin Powell, "You break it, you own it."
If you break Peyton's rhythm, you and you alone will be to blame for the loss. Learn from Tony's mistakes, don't try to coach Peyton. Rest any defensive starters who are hurt, but let Peyton run his offense. I love you, Jimmy. You're the only rookie head coach in history to win your first 14 games, but remember the MVP that got you there. Be smart, Jim, and one day they'll name a trophy after you.
Tell the family Merry Christmas!
Tim Hickle
Thursday, December 24, 2009
My Christmas Wish
Merry Christmas, all!
It's that time of the year again. Everyone seems a little cheerier, regardless of class, color, or creed. For those of us who have worked in the food industry, we know that this time of the year brings friendlier customers and bigger tips. For those of us who have worked professionally we know that this time of year is usually accompanied by a bonus. For kids, this time of year is married to thoughts of presents and Santa Clause. Everyone's happier.
Notice why?
I can't say I'm anti-materialism. The concept of acquiring as much as possible is the American way, like it or not, but why do we have such a deeply seeded emotional investment in our material possessions? I'm not saying that we should stop trying to acquire wealth, but what if we took a step back for a second and looked at our priorities. If I asked you to name the top five things you love in this world, what would you list? Suddenly a list of family members, friends, and experiences start rushing up.
Okay, not fair, how about top ten? Twenty?
Let's be straight here, if we all made a list of everything we love, and then the amount of time we spend with that person, or working on that relationship etc., you'd be astonished. Many people like their jobs, some people love theirs, but at what price do you take that job? What's your opportunity cost of your employment? You miss a lot in life when you're constantly seeking money, but that shouldn't stop you.
So here's my Christmas wish.
I wish that we all can sustain this same togetherness throughout the coming year.
I'm not asking you to quit your job to stay at home, but what if, instead of working overtime, you had a family dinner? College students: What if, instead of going out that Saturday, you take just one night that month to visit your family? What if every single one of us took five minutes out of every day to let someone whom you normally forget to acknowledge know how much you appreciate them? If we could accomplish something that small, maybe these times won't seem so hard.
Live Hard, Laugh Harder.
It's that time of the year again. Everyone seems a little cheerier, regardless of class, color, or creed. For those of us who have worked in the food industry, we know that this time of the year brings friendlier customers and bigger tips. For those of us who have worked professionally we know that this time of year is usually accompanied by a bonus. For kids, this time of year is married to thoughts of presents and Santa Clause. Everyone's happier.
Notice why?
I can't say I'm anti-materialism. The concept of acquiring as much as possible is the American way, like it or not, but why do we have such a deeply seeded emotional investment in our material possessions? I'm not saying that we should stop trying to acquire wealth, but what if we took a step back for a second and looked at our priorities. If I asked you to name the top five things you love in this world, what would you list? Suddenly a list of family members, friends, and experiences start rushing up.
Okay, not fair, how about top ten? Twenty?
Let's be straight here, if we all made a list of everything we love, and then the amount of time we spend with that person, or working on that relationship etc., you'd be astonished. Many people like their jobs, some people love theirs, but at what price do you take that job? What's your opportunity cost of your employment? You miss a lot in life when you're constantly seeking money, but that shouldn't stop you.
So here's my Christmas wish.
I wish that we all can sustain this same togetherness throughout the coming year.
I'm not asking you to quit your job to stay at home, but what if, instead of working overtime, you had a family dinner? College students: What if, instead of going out that Saturday, you take just one night that month to visit your family? What if every single one of us took five minutes out of every day to let someone whom you normally forget to acknowledge know how much you appreciate them? If we could accomplish something that small, maybe these times won't seem so hard.
Live Hard, Laugh Harder.
A Bandwagon Lament
Dear Pacers Fans,
This note is targeted to every "I haven't watched them since Reggie left" fan I've ever met in my life (there are A LOT of you). If you haven't checked out The Pacers Crate featuring Reggie, I'd recommend it...
http://www.nba.com/pacers/video/2009/12/15/crate091215reggiepart1wmv-1153495/index.html
Now, sit down, let's chat for a second.
One of the things they discuss in the second part of the Crate is how the fans who followed the team from the beginning had a much more intimate appreciation for the Finals, the Hicks beating the Knicks, Reggie trying to retire Michael, and Superman coming out in game 5 than the fans who decided they liked the Pacers when Reggie started hitting the big shots. I pride myself on being a huge Pacers fan, and even though I'm not old enough to remember the junk years of the Blue and Gold, they have returned. The unfortunate part for me has been Indianapolis' reaction. Reggie leaves and we throw him a party, retire his number, give him a Bentley. I cried my eyes out when Rick Carlisle took him out in the final seconds of game 6 of the Pistons series along with most of the city. We loved him, and we loved Pacers basketball.
Then what happened?
The city that I love abandoned the team I love because they weren't winning. It was hard to watch JO relaxed on the court as the team lost the intensity they once had, but I still watched it. People blame the brawl for the Pacers' self-destruction, but you HAVE to remember the game immediately following the brawl, when a total of six active players, most of whom had never started an NBA game, put up one of the most valiant efforts of the season.
Remember that?
This was also Reggie's last season. This season was supposed to be the year he finally won the big one. We were in a better position to go all the way than we ever had been before. The previous year, we had the best record in the East, Jermaine was third in the league for MVP voting, Ron-Ron was the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, Tinsley was playing like an All-Star, Stephen Jackson was a strong sixth man, and we still had Uncle Reggie. This was our year.
Unfortunately, we still never won the big one. 2006 rolled around and without Uncle Reggie, all hell broke loose. Artest wanted a trade, Jackson and Tinsley started playing with guns at 3 AM outside of strip clubs, O'Neal and company started slacking on and off the court.
There go my beloved Pacers.
But Larry Legend remembers both playing against and coaching for this team. Reggie didn't transform this team overnight. When Reggie started in Indianapolis, there were curtains covering the upper deck of Market Square Arena. The Pacers were a joke among their division, and Chuck Person, the one shining light of the team, was getting old. Reggie came in and, slowly but surely, grew the team to a perennial powerhouse that was the '93-'05 Pacers team.
I remember the junk Colts. I remember pretty vividly the upset that goes along with a team that just can't seem to win. Then we drafted the greatest quarterback in NFL history, and guess what happened the next season? We went 3-13.
What?
Yes, 3-13. The next two years, we made the playoffs, but then in 2001, we went 6-10. Today, we're 14-0, we've won a Super Bowl, and we're the winningest team of the decade, and it's hard to come by a game that's not sold out the day tickets go on sale.
So what happened?
In both cases, the great teams take time. The great teams start out young, lose a lot of close games, and they fail far more than they succeed. So when you see the young Pacers losing close games and say they're no good, I say nay. I look at Danny Granger, who can play with the best in the conference and beyond and say that we have found Reggie's long-lost son. I look at Roy Hibbert who is just now starting to come into his own as a big man and say that he will one day make Alonzo Morning jealous. I look at Crazy T and I know that he is Larry's guy all the way. Face facts, folks, these Pacers are damn good, and given a couple years to mature, will be pulling miracles once again.
Who knows? Maybe in a couple years. we'll have Danny putting up last second shots on Lebron. Maybe we'll have Crazy T putting up 25 in the fourth quarter on Orlando.
All I know is that we need to rally around this team now, while they're still developing, because if you can remember the losses, the victories taste so much sweeter.
Live Hard, Laugh Harder.
This note is targeted to every "I haven't watched them since Reggie left" fan I've ever met in my life (there are A LOT of you). If you haven't checked out The Pacers Crate featuring Reggie, I'd recommend it...
http://www.nba.com/pacers/video/2009/12/15/crate091215reggiepart1wmv-1153495/index.html
Now, sit down, let's chat for a second.
One of the things they discuss in the second part of the Crate is how the fans who followed the team from the beginning had a much more intimate appreciation for the Finals, the Hicks beating the Knicks, Reggie trying to retire Michael, and Superman coming out in game 5 than the fans who decided they liked the Pacers when Reggie started hitting the big shots. I pride myself on being a huge Pacers fan, and even though I'm not old enough to remember the junk years of the Blue and Gold, they have returned. The unfortunate part for me has been Indianapolis' reaction. Reggie leaves and we throw him a party, retire his number, give him a Bentley. I cried my eyes out when Rick Carlisle took him out in the final seconds of game 6 of the Pistons series along with most of the city. We loved him, and we loved Pacers basketball.
Then what happened?
The city that I love abandoned the team I love because they weren't winning. It was hard to watch JO relaxed on the court as the team lost the intensity they once had, but I still watched it. People blame the brawl for the Pacers' self-destruction, but you HAVE to remember the game immediately following the brawl, when a total of six active players, most of whom had never started an NBA game, put up one of the most valiant efforts of the season.
Remember that?
This was also Reggie's last season. This season was supposed to be the year he finally won the big one. We were in a better position to go all the way than we ever had been before. The previous year, we had the best record in the East, Jermaine was third in the league for MVP voting, Ron-Ron was the reigning Defensive Player of the Year, Tinsley was playing like an All-Star, Stephen Jackson was a strong sixth man, and we still had Uncle Reggie. This was our year.
Unfortunately, we still never won the big one. 2006 rolled around and without Uncle Reggie, all hell broke loose. Artest wanted a trade, Jackson and Tinsley started playing with guns at 3 AM outside of strip clubs, O'Neal and company started slacking on and off the court.
There go my beloved Pacers.
But Larry Legend remembers both playing against and coaching for this team. Reggie didn't transform this team overnight. When Reggie started in Indianapolis, there were curtains covering the upper deck of Market Square Arena. The Pacers were a joke among their division, and Chuck Person, the one shining light of the team, was getting old. Reggie came in and, slowly but surely, grew the team to a perennial powerhouse that was the '93-'05 Pacers team.
I remember the junk Colts. I remember pretty vividly the upset that goes along with a team that just can't seem to win. Then we drafted the greatest quarterback in NFL history, and guess what happened the next season? We went 3-13.
What?
Yes, 3-13. The next two years, we made the playoffs, but then in 2001, we went 6-10. Today, we're 14-0, we've won a Super Bowl, and we're the winningest team of the decade, and it's hard to come by a game that's not sold out the day tickets go on sale.
So what happened?
In both cases, the great teams take time. The great teams start out young, lose a lot of close games, and they fail far more than they succeed. So when you see the young Pacers losing close games and say they're no good, I say nay. I look at Danny Granger, who can play with the best in the conference and beyond and say that we have found Reggie's long-lost son. I look at Roy Hibbert who is just now starting to come into his own as a big man and say that he will one day make Alonzo Morning jealous. I look at Crazy T and I know that he is Larry's guy all the way. Face facts, folks, these Pacers are damn good, and given a couple years to mature, will be pulling miracles once again.
Who knows? Maybe in a couple years. we'll have Danny putting up last second shots on Lebron. Maybe we'll have Crazy T putting up 25 in the fourth quarter on Orlando.
All I know is that we need to rally around this team now, while they're still developing, because if you can remember the losses, the victories taste so much sweeter.
Live Hard, Laugh Harder.
Cascading in Blue Without a Sound
Preface: This is an old blog posted on facebook. I just wanted to post it so that any readers that may stumble upon this who do not know me can get to know me as both a person and a writer. Enjoy!
So much to talk about... So little time to talk about it...
Basically, there are 5 things that I want to talk about.
1. My Pacers
2. How much I've genuinely missed Indy
3. How thankful I am for everything and everyone in my life
4. How genuinely disappointed I am in myself
5. My existence's disparity towards its representation
Honestly, I can't bring myself to write an intelligible note about any of the above right now, but I just want to hit a couple high notes really quickly...
I am the Indiana Pacers. I am sloppy, unorganized, and right now, I'm nowhere near achieving full potential. I feel like I don't have much direction at this point. Honestly, I'm ashamed of myself. Just as every Pacers fan out there laments about what would happen "if Reggie were here," I tend to lament over similar hypotheticals. I feel like every failure that I've encountered over the past few years is a direct representation of my value, but is that the case? At the end of the season, it doesn't matter how hard you worked or how entertaining you make the games if you are a sub-.500 team. Similarly, I've worked my ass off recently. I've overstretched myself to the point of mental, emotional, and physical exhaustion, and what do I have to show for it? If the semester ended today, I'd have a sub-3.3 to show for it. Sure, in the process I've led a retreat, made people laugh, ushered at IU Auditorium, and never got one day of vacation until Wednesday, but that's irrelevant. I feel like I've failed in several aspects of my life. Those failures, or "losses" if you will, have not been major. In every case they've been close calls, and my victories have been by huge margins, but in the long run, basketball isn't cumulative and many aspects of life aren't either. One thing that I have to ask, however, is where is my inner-Reggie? What happened to my fiery, finesse side? Without that closer, I'm destined to fall short in a lot of aspects of my life. I guess there's one major point college is trying to get across to me: No one can be good at everything.
So I've covered 1, 4, and 5... Now for 2 and 3...
Well I guess the entire point I'm trying to make here is that I feel like I'm starting to figure out where I belong in life, and that place is Indianapolis. The more time I spend away, the more I realize exactly where I belong. Don't get me wrong, I'm not joining the Great Rebel Migration back to Indianapolis schools, but I do know where I'm moving the day I graduate. I love Bloomington, and I'm sure that the more time I spend there, the more it will feel like home to me, but the one thing that has trumped every great feeling towards B-Town is my feeling of love towards my hometown. Put simply, I feel God calling me to do great things in the 12th largest city in the US, my beloved hometown. Indiana is home of the giants. Reggie and Peyton played here, Larry and The Big O were raised here. Helio and the Andrettis made their names here. Gretsky and Randy Johnson got their starts here. Why is it that among all these giants, there has not been one notable political giant?
Because we've never needed one until now...
Suddenly the CIB has successfully bankrupted the city, the Pacers and Fever are out of money, just when you think they've out-worst themselves, IPS has reached an all-time low, our homeless rate is through the roof, and on top of that, the temperamental voters of Marian County boot anyone who tries to address the issue, preferring the dumb-as-you-wanna-be, wait and see approach of Greg "Had Enough" Ballard. Bottom line, Indianapolis needs three things in a leader...
1. A disciplined straight-shooter.
I'm done with this notion that appeasing the voting populace is a politician's job. Just because you voted for them doesn't mean you get to choose their actions. You elected them to lead you, not to be the puppet of the people. Give the government some credit, people. The founders made it a Republic for a reason. We need a leader with the balls to do what's right for the city, not his reelection campaign. We need someone who can be honest enough to not sugar-coat the pile of shit that has been dumped on the greatest city in the nation. We need someone who can address an issue, because if you can't address an issue, how can we ever expect to fix it?
2. A daddy.
If we want to make the next step in fixing Indy, we need more than a mayor, we need a father figure. Let's face it, if we want to fix the problem, we'll have to deal with some tax hikes. We're all going to need to make sacrifices, and that's never easy, but it's well worth it. Priority number one needs to be our youth. Right now, the disparity in reading levels in Carmel to IPS is sickening. When graduation rates in IPS are in the teens, we have major issues. Some may argue that IPS has been improving because they've skewed the data to favor Dr. White, but the truth is that we need a complete overhaul of the entire system. This is rough, but the only way that we can make it through such a transition is if we have a daddy with us, letting us know it's all going to be okay. We need someone we can trust to fix it, not just put a band aid on it.
3. A little bit of insanity.
We need someone that can stand up for Indy on all levels, and with how much our political system gets bullied around here, we need someone who isn't afraid to ruffle some feathers and embarrass a few people. For lack of a better term, we need a glorified badass. All the greatest Hoosier heroes are a little crazy, from Milan to Bloomington to Indianapolis. We need someone who can completely reform our educational and capital financial structures and then embrace the national spotlight and the scrutiny that will invariably come with that. We need someone who understands what we face here. We don't face a battle between school districts for test scores... What we face is the next great frontier in the civil rights movement. Dr. King had a dream, but his dream wasn't for minorities to be the majority of the impoverished. Say what you will about Affirmative Action, but we are yet to reach a day when equal rights are possible. Giving minorities an edge in college applications and employment opportunities is nowhere near what we need right now, what we need is for minorities to be on a level playing field at the BEGINNING of their education so they don't need an advantage later in life. Speaking as a middle class white male, we need to step up and make sure that America is what our founders dreamed, a land of opportunity. This opportunity should know no bounds or limits. (And to the middle class white people bitching about how you "earned" your money and it shouldn't go to "lazy welfare queens" aka the nation's poor, get the fuck over it. You had a 200 year head start in this nation, and your ancestors didn't earn shit, they stole it. In the words of everyone's favorite 90's TV show, "Life's tough, get a helmet")
Well, I just realized that a note this long published at 2 AM will yield absolutely zero readers, so I guess now's the time for me to wrap up by letting you all know that I love you ridiculous amounts and my break has been amazing. You all are fantastic, and if you're still reading this, thanks for being a trooper! I hope to elaborate more fully on Indy politics at some other time... Live hard, laugh harder.
So much to talk about... So little time to talk about it...
Basically, there are 5 things that I want to talk about.
1. My Pacers
2. How much I've genuinely missed Indy
3. How thankful I am for everything and everyone in my life
4. How genuinely disappointed I am in myself
5. My existence's disparity towards its representation
Honestly, I can't bring myself to write an intelligible note about any of the above right now, but I just want to hit a couple high notes really quickly...
I am the Indiana Pacers. I am sloppy, unorganized, and right now, I'm nowhere near achieving full potential. I feel like I don't have much direction at this point. Honestly, I'm ashamed of myself. Just as every Pacers fan out there laments about what would happen "if Reggie were here," I tend to lament over similar hypotheticals. I feel like every failure that I've encountered over the past few years is a direct representation of my value, but is that the case? At the end of the season, it doesn't matter how hard you worked or how entertaining you make the games if you are a sub-.500 team. Similarly, I've worked my ass off recently. I've overstretched myself to the point of mental, emotional, and physical exhaustion, and what do I have to show for it? If the semester ended today, I'd have a sub-3.3 to show for it. Sure, in the process I've led a retreat, made people laugh, ushered at IU Auditorium, and never got one day of vacation until Wednesday, but that's irrelevant. I feel like I've failed in several aspects of my life. Those failures, or "losses" if you will, have not been major. In every case they've been close calls, and my victories have been by huge margins, but in the long run, basketball isn't cumulative and many aspects of life aren't either. One thing that I have to ask, however, is where is my inner-Reggie? What happened to my fiery, finesse side? Without that closer, I'm destined to fall short in a lot of aspects of my life. I guess there's one major point college is trying to get across to me: No one can be good at everything.
So I've covered 1, 4, and 5... Now for 2 and 3...
Well I guess the entire point I'm trying to make here is that I feel like I'm starting to figure out where I belong in life, and that place is Indianapolis. The more time I spend away, the more I realize exactly where I belong. Don't get me wrong, I'm not joining the Great Rebel Migration back to Indianapolis schools, but I do know where I'm moving the day I graduate. I love Bloomington, and I'm sure that the more time I spend there, the more it will feel like home to me, but the one thing that has trumped every great feeling towards B-Town is my feeling of love towards my hometown. Put simply, I feel God calling me to do great things in the 12th largest city in the US, my beloved hometown. Indiana is home of the giants. Reggie and Peyton played here, Larry and The Big O were raised here. Helio and the Andrettis made their names here. Gretsky and Randy Johnson got their starts here. Why is it that among all these giants, there has not been one notable political giant?
Because we've never needed one until now...
Suddenly the CIB has successfully bankrupted the city, the Pacers and Fever are out of money, just when you think they've out-worst themselves, IPS has reached an all-time low, our homeless rate is through the roof, and on top of that, the temperamental voters of Marian County boot anyone who tries to address the issue, preferring the dumb-as-you-wanna-be, wait and see approach of Greg "Had Enough" Ballard. Bottom line, Indianapolis needs three things in a leader...
1. A disciplined straight-shooter.
I'm done with this notion that appeasing the voting populace is a politician's job. Just because you voted for them doesn't mean you get to choose their actions. You elected them to lead you, not to be the puppet of the people. Give the government some credit, people. The founders made it a Republic for a reason. We need a leader with the balls to do what's right for the city, not his reelection campaign. We need someone who can be honest enough to not sugar-coat the pile of shit that has been dumped on the greatest city in the nation. We need someone who can address an issue, because if you can't address an issue, how can we ever expect to fix it?
2. A daddy.
If we want to make the next step in fixing Indy, we need more than a mayor, we need a father figure. Let's face it, if we want to fix the problem, we'll have to deal with some tax hikes. We're all going to need to make sacrifices, and that's never easy, but it's well worth it. Priority number one needs to be our youth. Right now, the disparity in reading levels in Carmel to IPS is sickening. When graduation rates in IPS are in the teens, we have major issues. Some may argue that IPS has been improving because they've skewed the data to favor Dr. White, but the truth is that we need a complete overhaul of the entire system. This is rough, but the only way that we can make it through such a transition is if we have a daddy with us, letting us know it's all going to be okay. We need someone we can trust to fix it, not just put a band aid on it.
3. A little bit of insanity.
We need someone that can stand up for Indy on all levels, and with how much our political system gets bullied around here, we need someone who isn't afraid to ruffle some feathers and embarrass a few people. For lack of a better term, we need a glorified badass. All the greatest Hoosier heroes are a little crazy, from Milan to Bloomington to Indianapolis. We need someone who can completely reform our educational and capital financial structures and then embrace the national spotlight and the scrutiny that will invariably come with that. We need someone who understands what we face here. We don't face a battle between school districts for test scores... What we face is the next great frontier in the civil rights movement. Dr. King had a dream, but his dream wasn't for minorities to be the majority of the impoverished. Say what you will about Affirmative Action, but we are yet to reach a day when equal rights are possible. Giving minorities an edge in college applications and employment opportunities is nowhere near what we need right now, what we need is for minorities to be on a level playing field at the BEGINNING of their education so they don't need an advantage later in life. Speaking as a middle class white male, we need to step up and make sure that America is what our founders dreamed, a land of opportunity. This opportunity should know no bounds or limits. (And to the middle class white people bitching about how you "earned" your money and it shouldn't go to "lazy welfare queens" aka the nation's poor, get the fuck over it. You had a 200 year head start in this nation, and your ancestors didn't earn shit, they stole it. In the words of everyone's favorite 90's TV show, "Life's tough, get a helmet")
Well, I just realized that a note this long published at 2 AM will yield absolutely zero readers, so I guess now's the time for me to wrap up by letting you all know that I love you ridiculous amounts and my break has been amazing. You all are fantastic, and if you're still reading this, thanks for being a trooper! I hope to elaborate more fully on Indy politics at some other time... Live hard, laugh harder.
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