It's Like the Bottom of the Ninth and I'm Never Gonna Win
If you know what song the title line comes from, you'll understand why I chose it for this post in a second. If not, well, listen to the radio more often, would you? Yesterday, I got up at about 5:00am in order to drive to Dobson High School in Mesa to stand in line to get a ticket to see the President Barack Obama speak there on Wednesday (tomorrow). --------------------------------- Interjection for rant on intolerance: Now, I know what you're thinking: why on Earth did a former College Republican, member of Arizona Victory 2006 for the AZGOP, Republican congressional intern, and PR assistant for four 2008 GOP campaigns go stand in a line with a bunch of Democrats to hear a Democratic president speak about his bloated government spending bill at a Mesa high school at 5 in the morning? My answer is threefold: 1. How often do you get the chance to see the President of the United States speak in your hometown (unless you live in the DC area, I suppose)? Democrat, Republican, whatever - I respect the Office of the President and the person who is in that job, even though I may disagree with some or most of his policies. If you're not secure enough in your beliefs to understand that, then I feel sorry for you as a Republican or Democrat or other party member, and I hope you take some time to reflect on what you're insecure about. 2. The President will be discussing the stimulus bill which recently passed Congress and about the housing crisis. Since this bill WILL be signed into law in a matter of hours, isn't it just a little bit important to hear how he plans to implement the policies in the bill? Isn't it important to hear how this bill will impact the next four years, at least, of our government? If for no other reason than it will showcase what flaws there are in the plan and where improvements can and should be made? 3. As a political science major in college, one of the most important things I was taught was to be impartial in analyzing data - legislation, research, etc. How can I be impartial in critiquing the stimulus bill if I don't know how the President plans to use it to stimulate the economy? Now, a lot of people I know have fallen into three categories of criticism for my wanting to go to the speech: people like former or current College Republicans who are "surprised" I'd go to the speech, Republican friends of mine who jokingly (at least I hope so) call me a traitor to my party and my ideology, and Democrats who think it's cool I am open-minded (and who also joke that I'm coming over to the dark side). I don't understand the people in the first group who find it surprising I'd do something like this - I'm interested in politics. Both sides. The world isn't black and white, Dem or GOP, yes or no. To fight something you first have to understand it. I feel sorry for the people who don't even try. End of interjection. ------------------------------------ Anyway, I got up at 5am and drove out to the high school with a big, thick coat (it was cold), a camp chair (4 hours sitting on the ground didn't appeal to me), and a book to read when the sun came up. I was a good quarter mile away from the administration doors, where the tickets were being handed out standing in line with a woman (who'd pretty much rolled out of bed like me and had also brought reading material, a chair, and a blanket), a Hawaiian gentleman with dreadlocks, and a couple of Dobson High students. For the first couple hours until around 7:30am, it was really, really cold, and we all were just there shivering and making small talk. The atmosphere was much like any line I've stood in to get a ticket to a GOP event - most people were talking about anything BUT politics, a few were remarking on why the opposite party was less than their favorite, and everyone was smiling and excited at the prospect of getting in the door. Around 8am, some people from the front of the line came back to tell us that they had taken it upon themselves to ensure order and had given numbers to the first 535 people in line (I remember the number because it's the number of people in the House and Senate combined). They also said that considering there were only 400 tickets available, anyone over #500 should probably just leave because we were wasting our time. In fact, that's probably the reason I got one of those tickets, because so many people in front of me left! There were in actuality about 600 tickets handed out, and I was number 575. They opened the gates and began letting people enter about 9:30am, and the line moved slowly and steadily as 20 people at a time were let through. At this point, we didn't know how many tickets there were, so we were on the bubble waiting to see if we would be able to make it. As time went by, rumors from the front of the line were that there were actually about 600 tickets available to the people in line, and my group began to get excited, because our counts had put us at about #570, just inside the margin. Finally, at about 11:30am, we were at the front of the line and were waiting our turn to enter when they stopped to count exactly how many tickets were left. The guy counting people came out and said "If I point at you, you're going in." I was one of those last few people, had to sign for my ticket, and came out to see a bunch of people still mobbing the security officers there trying to plead their way into a ticket and getting interviewed by the press about how it felt to be turned away. I confess myself a bit worried about making it back to my car without incident, seeing as how obsessive people are about President Obama. There were a couple times there I thought I might get mugged for my ticket. But nothing happened. After that, I went home, called a friend of mine who really wished he could have gotten a ticket, got criticized by every member of the GOP in Arizona it seems, got some support from a fellow Republican NOT in Arizona, and went and played Rock Band with Scott, Travis, Abigail, and Kim until about 9:30pm. I will post how the event went tomorrow with any pictures I am able to take. The Wind Caves
Last week, I decided it was time to try to hike up Pass Mountain in the Usury Park Recreation Area (UPRA) up in northeast Mesa. I planned it for Saturday morning, and asked Scott if he wanted to join. To my enjoyment, and with a minor amount of coaxing, he agreed. Now, for those of you who know not why this mountain is interesting, let me provide some background. Pass Mountain is the largest mountain in the UPRA and has a great trail complex - something like 15 different trails ranging from less than one mile to Pass Mountain Trail, a 7.2-mile trek around the mountain itself. Nearby, also on the same land, is the Usury Park Shooting Range for gun enthusiasts, a large campground area, and an archery range. The only trail that goes UP Pass Mountain is the "Wind Cave Trail" - so named for it's destination, the Wind Caves, which are Anasazi-like structures carved out of the mountain's sedimentary-rock midsection by the wind. The caves are roughly 2800 feet elevation, and the trailhead is 1.5-miles long originating at about 1200 feet elevation. That's a nice steep climb. If one chooses, there is an additional summit trail from the Wind Caves to the top of the mountain, another 400 feet elevation or so. In addition to all of this, there are two geocaches on the trail - one about halfway up, and the other on the very summit of the mountain. We began our journey about 9am when I picked Scott up at his place. We went to Bashas to get some lunch supplies - sandwiches, chicken, fruit, that sort of thing - and then to Dunkin' Donuts for coffee and breakfast. We reached the mountain at about 10am, paid our $6 park entrance fee, parked the car, grabbed our backpacks, and got ready to go. I made sure to bring a light jacket just in case it was colder at the top (it wasn't), my GPS, and LOTS of water. Before the hike: Once we got started, we found out how well we were going to be able to take the climb (not being in much shape to begin with, both of us were forced to take frequent rest/water breaks). The 1.5-mile hike up the mountain ended up taking about 4 hours to get to the Wind Caves, but it was worth it! Scott on a break:Andrew on a break:Finally, though, we reached the caves. The view from the top is spectacular. To the north, Fountain Hills' fountain can be seen every hour on the hour spraying up into the air. That fountain used to be the world's largest, back several years ago. Every St. Patrick's Day, they dye the water jet emerald green. I grew up in Fountain Hills, and that's still one of my favorite memories! I may go back this year for that party! To the west, just below the mountain is a set of smaller mountains, including the one that says "PHOENIX" in white lettering on the side, which used to be a navigation tool for airplanes a long time ago. I'm not sure if it actually was, but that's the legend. To the south, the caves, and to the east, the rest of the mountain. In the picture below, Scott and I stopped here to have lunch in the outcropping on the left. On the right, in the valley below, is the area surrounding Ellsworth Rd. and McKellips Rd. in Mesa.We made it to the caves!:After lunch, at around 1:30pm or so, we decided to try for the geocache on the top of the mountain. This involves going on a rough and rather dangerous "trail" out past the caves. It is marked solely by faded spray-painted arrows on the sides of the boulders up there, and we lost the trail at least twice. Once, I even made the error of thinking we needed to climb straight up the face of a sheer rock wall when in fact, we had just not seen the arrows. But eventually, we did find our prize, about 30 feet off the "trail" and over some rocks. The view from the top was AMAZING. The valley floor stretched out to the west of us (and on a clear day like Saturday, we could see out past downtown Phoenix), and the empty desert of the Goldfield Mountain Range and the Superstition Mountain Range to the east of us. The contrast between the developed west side and the natural east side created quite the juxtaposition! This picture is of me with the geocache, aptly named "King Usury's Treasure":But, hey, all good things must come to an end. The sun was beginning to sink in the sky, and we still had a long way back to the car with our water supplies running a little low. On the way down, I stopped to pick up the second cache on the mountain, which required a bit of technical manuvering on my part over some VERY loose gravel. But hey, I only slipped and cut up my hands and wrists twice! No snakes or scorpions, though, so that was good! The trek down the mountain was about an hour long, as opposed to the four-hour upward hike and the extra hour on the summit trail. By the end, exhaustion had set in, our muscles were achy, and I wanted three things: water, shower, and sleep, in that order. The "after" photo:Overall, it was a fantastic hike. Scott was a great motivator, despite the fact that he nearly fell off the mountain, saved only by my mad shirt-grabbing skillz (yo), and he had to put up with my banter the whole day (ask my parents, they'll tell you THAT ain't easy!). My plan is to do something of this nature every weekend - maybe not a 3-mile hike up a mountain, but something! Next time, y'all should consider coming along if you're in the area! So for those of you who might regularly read my blog (all three of you lol!), you've probably heard that I won a radio contest called the Two-Minute Drill from AM 620 KTAR sports radio for a trip to any football game's city and tickets to the game playing on 10/12/2008. I chose to go to Tampa, Florida and see the Panthers-Buccaneers game. Here's what we did on the trip!
At 9am on Saturday, my dad and I boarded our nonstop flight to Tampa. Southwest Airlines does not have very good seating, may I say, though the flight itself wasn't that bad. I just happen to be a large person, and it's less than easy fitting in a tin can with seatbelts! But nonetheless, we got to Tampa just fine, checked into our hotel, the Grand Hyatt Tampa Bay, and immediately left for Tropicana Field to see if we could score some (relatively) cheapish tickets to the ALCS Game 2 between the Red Sox and Rays. I won't tell you how much the tickets cost, but suffice it to say that I was glad I'd just been paid the previous day! The game itself was GREAT! And LONG. It was a 9-8 Rays victory over 11 innings and 5 1/2 hours. The game started at 8:07 pm EST and ended at 1:37 am EST! After the flight and the game, I was definitely ready for bed!The next day, we got up fairly early, had our complementary continental breakfast (from a hotel costing $200 a night, continental breakfast is GOOD!) and went to Raymond James Stadium, home of the Buccaneers. We were seated in front of the big (and quite unique) pirate ship on the North end of the stadium, about 8 rows off of field level. Every time the Bucs scored, big loud cannons would fire from the ship, rocking the stadium and just about deafening me and dad! The game was a good shellacking of the Panthers, with the final score ending up as 27-3 Bucs. I saw my first in-person blocked punt on the first drive of the game, and one of the Buccaneers was called for "unsportsmanlike conduct" after cartwheeling (yes, cartwheeling) off the field after having intercepted a pass! The only downfall was that the stadium was open-air and REALLY hot (see: humid). Suffice it to say that I got quite nicely sunburned. But it was definitely a fun and unique experience! After the game, we drove down and over the Sunshine Skyway toll bridge south of St. Petersburg, because my dad wanted to see it - it's a cool bridge, actually. It's a suspension bridge where all the weight of the bridge is carried on two superstrong pillers, supported by high-tension cables trailing down to the roadway level. (See photo below) It was actually hit by a boat in 1980 and destroyed, and they rebuilt it this way: We also did the obligatory stop at St. Pete's beaches, driving up the Gulf coast from the Sunshine Skyway to Clearwater, FL. There, where it had been sunny and bright all day, it suddenly turned stormy, and I caught this beautiful photo of one of the Tampa bridges and causeways out on the edge of Tampa Bay:That night, we ate at Bahama Breeze, a restaurant overlooking the bay, and I got something called a paiella, basically cajun-style rice with Creole spices, Tampa Bay scallops, mussels, shrimp, chicken, and other goodies. It was delicious! The next day, we checked out of the Hyatt fairly early, and spent much of the day at the Florida Aquarium, which I will elaborate on in another post probably tomorrow. But it was really a great trip, and I had so much fun! (Now I'm about to go see if the Rays can finish off the Red Sox in Game 6 of the ALCS!) Instant Replay is Unwarranted
Today, I read an interesting opinion article by NBCSports.com writer Bryan Burwell titled "Why Limit Replays to Home Run Calls?" Burwell's opinion inspired me to write down some of my own thoughts as an avid baseball fan in defense of what Burwell calls the "old-school" way of thinking. For those that haven't heard about it, America's pastime recently got a technological makeover in the form of instant replay for the sole purpose of allowing the crew chief of an umpiring crew to see if his crew got a home run call of fair or foul, over the wall or not, and fan interference or not correct. Major League Baseball is the last major sport to not utilize replay, unlike football where replays are used nearly every game to dispute almost any play, hockey to dispute goals, or tennis to dispute close line calls by the line judges. The basic setup of the replay system is simple - in all thirty MLB ballparks, a video screen and phone are set up. This is connected to an off-site central replay center for all replays. The crew chief of the umpiring crew calls for a review of a homer, views the replay on the screen, and exercises sole discretion in upholding or overturning the call. Unlike football, there are no "coach's challenges" or player requests like in tennis. This might seem like a good thing, and perhaps it is, as Burwell suggests, "belated" as compared to the other sports. However, I offer a different perspective. In football, hockey, and tennis, fans don't exercise the option to yell at the referees for a bad call - they yell for the coaches to challenge the judge's decision. In baseball, one of the best things about the game is it's fallibility. When a player smashes one down the right-field line and it goes into the corner and looks to be out of the park, but is subsequently called foul, who among us doesn't like to yell at the umpires? Baseball fans have a much more intimate relationship with the umps than any other sport does with its officiating crew: before each game, the umpiring crew is announced to the stadium, scorecards have spaces on them for the umpires as well as the players, and many fans can pick out the umpires from the quirks they harbor behind the plate or on the field (just TRY to ignore Jim Joyce calling a called strike!). The point is: we want to yell at them, then accept that the call didn't go our way that time and sit back down with the subtle reminder that human error is a part of the game. Same thing for safe/not safe, balls and strikes, and fair or foul. It's fun to watch the umps get it wrong; I would say its almost an essential part of the game. "The idea in every game we play is fairness," says Berwell. "The idea in every game we play is to get it right." What he fails to recognize is that that officiating crew "gets it right" 99 percent of the time! And even when they don't, the play was almost always so close that the call could go either way, even with replay. Trust me, after watching several years' worth of baseball games on TV, where every close play is shown over and over, even slowed down to "Extreme Slo-Mo" speeds, it can still be hard to determine what the call "should have" been. And if it's that way for every team and every player, what's not fair about that? While the technological part works for football (where you really can't tell what's going on without replays anyway), tennis, or hockey, it's a system that seeks to bring down the level of the game of baseball. My opinion as a fan of the game and a modern student of technology is that not only do we need a traditional game that puts aside the ideals of so-called perfection that only the National Enquirer can showcase, but that taking this "advancement" any farther than it already has would continue to degrade the enjoyability of baseball considerably. Those people, like Mr. Berwell, who argue for the mechanization of the game are not fans in my book, but rather glorified statisticians seeking nothing more than a reason to argue. I think I may have finally formulated a plan for the future. I found out that there is actually a Master's degree program for something called Library Science. NAU didn't offer such a program, so I never knew about it. I've always loved libraries and books in general, and I think it would be amazing - AH-MAZING for Chelsea - to work for the Library of Congress or the National Archives and Records Administration! Problem is, to get a job as a librarian or library technician, you have to have a Master's Degree in Library Science. Therefore, I have two plans: 1. If I find a job in the government by February, I will work in that job for a while and gain experience and money to pay for graduate school, then get a degree in either Public Administration or Library Science and go from there. 2. If I do NOT find a job by February in my field then I will take the GRE, apply to either U of A or somewhere else that offers the program, and go for my degree immediately, then apply to the Library of Congress and get to DC that way. Hopefully, that will give me a sense of purpose and a goal to achieve going into the winter months here, because right now I really don't feel like I know what the hell I'm doing.
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Andrew MeeusenBaseball fanatic, political observer, soon-to-be library science grad, and all around mildly interesting person. Archives
December 2013
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