Christmas Vacation Italian Style

The past few days have been a whirlwind.  The last time I wrote we were heading into Naples to get pizza.  The plan changed when my luggage was in airport purgatory.  I eventually had to go to the airport and demand my bag.  After about forty five minutes and also aiding a member of the U.S Navy who was in the same predicament as me, I was on my way with my bag.  Instead of heading to Naples we went to Caserta and just as good pizza.

After lunch we went up to a small little mountain town called Casertavecchia, which translated is "Old Caserta".  When you think of old time Italian towns, this one takes the cake.  The streets made of cobblestone and just wide enough barely fit a car.  You could literally walk the entire town in about 15 minutes.  The hilly streets and old time feel makes this a very interesting visit.

Casertavecchia

That brings us to Christmas Eve and you can only imagine what that entails.  I took the family through the town of San Nicola during the morning to get out of the house to avoid being yelled at by the multitude of Italian ladies cooking dinner.  The feast of the seven fishes was everything that it was cracked up to be.  Eel, squid, octopus, shrimp, cod fish, white fish, and scallops.  Thirty five people surrounding a table and talking at an octave that only a dog can appreciate.  Even Aunt Bethany from "Christmas Vacation" could hear this conversation.  The evening finished with a trip from Santa and a game called Tombola, which is equivalent to BINGO

Christmas Day was as about as relaxing as could be. Surrounding by family once again and Christmas mass in the church in which I was baptized.  This was the climax of my "Good Ol' Fashioned Italian Christmas".

Today (Friday) we woke up early and headed to the former house of Bourbon.  The Royal Palace of Caserta was last inhabitant of the monarchy that ruled Italy before its independence in 1848.  There are 1,700 windows and 120 rooms in the castle, only about a quarter of that is opened to the public.  After viewing the inside we went into the back grounds.  The grounds are just under two miles long and roughly a mile wide.  We took a ride in a horse drawn carriage to avoid really tiring out the baseball orphans.

Ten days is never enough time to tour Southern Italy, when you throw a holiday in the mix the time frame intensifies.  We have two more days left in Italy and we plan to make the most of them.  Until next time.

3D
If you don't take it from me, ask my wife.

Christmas Italian Style

It's Tuesday morning and I still have no luggage.  Supposedly it is coming today, let's just say I am less than confident.  We do have a pool going so hopefully the pot doesn't raise.

The past couple of days have been a world wind.  On Sunday morning we woke up a little later than we wanted and we headed to the Abbey at Monte Cassino.  If you don't know the story of Monte Cassino, it is sad story.  On February 15, 1944 the Allied and German forces were locked in a battle at the Gustav line, which was a German stronghold preventing Allied access to Rome.  Since the Abbey sits on top of a mountain it was rumored that German troops were occupying it for the high vantage point.  Tha Allied forces decided to bombard the abbey with an air raid turning the structure to rubble.  It was later confirmed that only Italian refugees were in the church and perished in the rubble.  After the war the Italian State, with the aid of Allied resources, rebuilt the abbey to its original state.

Church at the Monte Cassino Abbey

It is an impressive build with some great architecture.  The vantage points give a great view of the Appenine Mountains.  Below the hill are several cemetaries of soldiers from other countries that perished in the battles around the hill.  The church inside is decorated with beautiful art,14 karat gold architecture and a nativity scene eight feet long.  The baseball orphans were left speechless at all "toys".

Following the trip we went to a restaurant for lunch/dinner.  We eventually had to get up and leave because they just kept bringing out food.  As we walked out, the chef was sad that we were leaving because he had more food to bring out to us.  Restaurant, Italian style.

On Monday, we took it easy.  We went to "Il Mercato".  It's a type of flea market/farmers market where it has been known that some high end products have "fallen of the truck".  There was a large crowd which reminded me of Disney World.  No Holds Barred.

Il Mercato in San Nicola La Strada

All in all, we are having a good time.  Tuesday's agenda has a trip to Naples and lunch at Presidente Pizzeria which has been made famous by a visit from President Clinton and the movie "Eat, Pray, Love".  Hopefully my bag comes today.  Daily laundry is getting old.

3D
If you don't take it from me, ask my wife.

Good Ol' Fashioned (Italian) Christmas

Greetings from Caserta, Italy.  This year the baseball widow and I decided to have, as Clark Griswold would say, "Good Old Fashioned Family Christmas", Italian Style.  My goal is to blog as much as I can, if not daily during our stay.  

You will be seeing this Sunday Morning, so the only thing that has happened is the travel to Italy and a reunion with Family members.  I would like to say that everything went off without a hitch, but that just doesn't happen to me during my travels.

I will preface this by saying that the staff at Alitalia is great and have always been good to me.  To be quite honest it was a great trip.  When the baseball orphans first saw the airplane at Logan, they couldn't hold their excitement. Our flight path took us from Boston to Rome to Naples.  Rome seemed to be the problem.  We arrived in Rome and the only way I could describe the airport organization was "a cluster".  The security line had roughly two thousand people, three lines and zero organization.  It was a free for all until you got to the front.  Then the airline changed our gates four times during our layover, which was about two hours.

We finally boarded our connecting flight to Naples and we sat on the tarmac for an hour while they finalized the baggages on the plane.  Then we took the connection and arrived in Naples roughly thirty minutes late.  No big deal.  The big deal was that all but one bag arrived from Rome and it was yours truly.  Didn't they take extra time to square that away??  I have traveled to Italy nine times in my life and five of those times a bag has not arrived on time and once, not at all.  I was prepared because of experience, so it wasn't a completely awful.  Just annoying.

The reunion with the family was great and they almost literally ate up the baseball orphans.  You can image the feast that was waiting for us, twice when we arrived.  This is going to be a great trip and I look forward to sharing this with you.  As of Sunday Morning (Italy time) Rome airport still had my bag.  I think the online auction is Monday, I will keep you posted.

I want to apologize for any spelling errors, my spell check is in Italian.

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife.

 

It Never Gets Old! Thank a Vet!

Greetings from Guadalajara, Mexico.  The 9 to 5 has sent me for this week so I will be posting abroad.  I am keeping up with tradition and posting a public thank you to military personnel that I have been lucky to come to know over the years.  Some people say that my appreciation to the military is sometimes over the top, my response that is "No it is not!, I can't thank them enough"

Our military deserves our support, right wrong, or indifferent.  These brave men and women volunteer to take a job to defend this great nation.  They should be commended, not condemned.  That is all I have to say about the respect our military deserves, because most Americans feel the same way I do.  As I normally do each year I want to thank these specific individuals for their service and everything they have done for this country.  This year I am adding a dear friend, Christopher Lyness.  He just returned from his tech school with the Air National Guard and is currently stationed on Cape Cod.  If you would like to add someone to my annual list please drop me a message, I would love to honor them

Christopher Lyness - Air Force National Guard
Timothy MacCartney Sr. - United States Army
Timothy MacCartney Jr. - United States Army
Ron Scarborough Sr. - United States Air Force
Michael Scarborough - United States Air Force
Ron Scarborough Jr. - United States Marine Corp
Derek Gordon - United States Marine Corp.
Cary MacCartney - United States Army
Craig Tomanini - United States Army
Jill Murray Wildt - United States Marine Corp.
Sam Wildt - United States Navy
Don Mason - United States Army
Eric Catalanotti - United States Army
Robert Catalanotti - United States Army
Justin LaMonda - United States Marine Corp.
Denny Brigley - United States Army
John Finneron - United States Army - P.O.W. World War II
David Layman - United States Navy
Dan Thibodeau - United States Marine Corp.
Kim-Cameron King - United States Marine Corp.
Mary McCue - United States Marine Corp.
Rusty Williamson - United States Navy
Nick Fortunato - United States Navy
Paul Dell'ovo - United States Air Force
Paul Vigneault - United States Navy
DJ Gentile - United States Coast Guard
Glenn Peacock - United States Coast Guard

Thank you!

3D
If you don't take it from me, ask my wife

How Are We Going to Fix the Roads?

With less than a week to go before the election I am going to be honest, I have not been paying attention the races nearly as much as I should.  Since Ed Markey doesn't feel the need to explain why we should send him back to Washington, then why should I care about the public office elections?  I will go in with a closed mind, just like everyone else and vote the way I normally do, However, I have been really researching and marinating the ballot questions on this year’s ballot.  There are some serious questions which will impact everyday lives for everyone in the Commonwealth.  

Question 1 - Eliminating the Gas Tax.  Hopefully the answer to this question does not confuse voters.  A Yes vote would eliminate the requirement that the state’s gas tax be adjusted annually based on the Consumer Price Index.  A No vote would make no change in the laws regarding the gas tax.  I could go down the taxation without representation, but I won't.  The issue I have with this law is that once it gets the green light it will never change.  Repealing the law does not prevent our elected leaders from raising the gas tax annually on their own.  What repealing does do is hold them accountable, because nobody can hide behind the law.  The argument that we will lose all this money for roads to be fixed.  If you have driven on the Mass Pike Westbound you know that's hogwash.  The money is there, don't be scared into voting no.  This one is a slam dunk. 3D voting YES.

Question 2 - Expanding the bottle bill.  Good Lord!  What is this, 1985?  I thought we were past all this with plastic/paper/glass stuff.  The argument for is because we will see less trash and more recycling.  I'm sorry, the people that leave plastic bottles in parks, in gutters and don't recycle properly are not paying attention to this law and I have a secret for you.  They are going to continue to do that whether this law passes or not.  Towns could see nearly $60 million increase on expanding their recycling programs.  Don't you think they could use that money to fix roads?  Another slam dunk.  3D voting NO.

Question 3 - Repealing Gambling Laws.  I truly believed this was Karma working against the Legislature.  The fact that this law was passed without getting the pulse of the state and now it goes to the people to repeal it.  I was leaning towards yes just to show the legislature how inept they truly are.  Then I had a moment of clarity.  I have always been a proponent of gaming and the communities that were awarded gaming sites voted overwhelmingly to allow these facilities in their communities.  So, in essence, the people have spoken.  That's one viewpoint.  What about the jobs and revenue in Massachusetts?  Let's face it people, Springfield is Massachusetts version of Detroit and the MGM Grand, may give the city the boost it needs.  Instead of going to Connecticut and Rhode Island, let’s keep that money here.  Maybe we can fix some roads with it.  Not as resounding as the previous two.  3D voting NO.

Question 4 - Earned Sick Time for Employees - Although I understand the sentiment and I do wish that all employers would step up and do this on their own, they shouldn't be forced to.  This is government intrusion into a private industry.  My core beliefs just can't accept that.  Everyone wants to attack the Wal-Marts of the world but this will hurt the Regatta Delis of the world.  We are supposed to help them not force them to close the doors.  3D voting NO.

That's my take on the four ballot questions and with less than a week left before voting day, if you feel so compelled, please try to change my mind.  I've given you my reasons, give me yours.  Maybe we can fix the roads.

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife

Time to "Tamp it Down"

Governor Deval Patrick and I finally agree on something.  It has taken almost 8 years but it is finally there.  Can we please "tamp" down the reports on the Ebola virus?  This has literally gotten to the point where I am not even turning my television on because that is all I hear about.  Since Gov. Patrick said those statements to a reporter on Monday, the media is blasting him for not fully grasping the urgency of the issue.  He doesn't understand the urgency??

On Monday night, after Gov. Patrick made those comments, Fox 25 News at 10 spent the first ten minutes of its broadcast on the "scare" at Logan Airport where five passengers were removed from an Emirates flight from Dubai by people in Haz-Mat suits because they were ill the entire flight, roughly 14 hours.  They were brought to a local hospital and declared Ebola free, they had flu like symptoms.  Two studio hosts, one special reporter on set, one reporter at Logan and one reporter at the hospital to report on 5 people that had the flu.  They may as well park themselves outside every public schools nurse's office between now and March because Ebola may spread like wildfire.

The Ebola virus is scary, no doubt.  I read the book "The Hot Zone" when it came out in 1995 and watched the movie "Contagion" last year.  It is real, it is scary and people want to know more, I get it.  But reporting about every person who has the symptoms is a little overkill because it presents the same symptoms as the common cold.

Here are a few facts about Ebola that everyone should know. I pulled these from WebMD and the CDC websites.  It is no more contagious than any other cold, flu or measles.  It spreads through contact with skin or bodily fluids.  Ebola care takers are at an extremely high risk, for example the nurse in Dallas who contracted the disease when tending to man who died from it.  You can’t get Ebola from air, water, or food. A person who has Ebola but has no symptoms can’t spread the disease, either.  Then there is the customary touching of needles and contaminated surfaces.  Symptoms are fever, headache, muscle pain, sore throat, weakness, stomach pain, lack of appetite and vomiting.  If you already knew this, then stop watching the news because they are not giving you any of this information

With cold and flu season upon us, it is possible that this could get worse.  I understand that the world we live in now is that if they don't report it, someone else will.  Unfortunately, that theory has led to the large amount of irresponsible reporting going on in the world.  Rapidity trumps certainties.  Brevity is the key to good communication, but it needs to be factual.  In a story, with such a large audience looking for answers, facts needs to trump speed.

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife

Life's a Party, Crash It

Last weekend the Baseball Widow and I crashed a wedding. Yep, you read that correctly, we crashed a wedding, well, sort of.  A friend of my wife, with whom she works, was getting married.  The running joke was that she was going to crash the wedding.  Several weeks ago, the bride brought my wife an invitation with the instructions to come after dinner and dance and party with everyone else.

Normally, I would say no way.  My wife was making plans with others that got the same instructions and I relented.  So, I was going to crash a wedding.  I started practicing my art of balloon animals (I hope more than five people get that reference), I started thinking of a  cool person I could be and I started brushing up on my Wedding Crashing Etiquette, as if there is such a thing.  The night before the wedding the bride texts my wife and says that two people have bailed and asked if we wanted to come for the entire reception, we had been called in from the bullpen.  Wedding Crashing dreams dashed.

So my wife and I went to the wedding. I as Don Harrison, a retired fire chief from New York, who happened to have selected one of a handful of the vegetarian meals.  My wife went as Seth Kelly, I didn't catch his back story as I was still reeling from the vegetarian selection.  It was a beautiful reception in the heart of Salem, Mass. and my wife and I got a night out without the kids, winners all around.  Plus "UConn Sucks" was chanted by all the Syracuse alum very often, and quite randomly.  I was in heaven.

The next day my wife struck up a conversation as we headed to my brother's house in Manchester (By the Sea), and stated that authorized Wedding Crashing could be the way to go and that had she thought of it, that is how our wedding would have gone.  Is it law that you have to spend $100-$300 a plate on some people you barely know, family you never see and people that are friends with your parents and not particularly you?  It makes perfect sense.

You could have the ceremony, have a small intimate dinner with your immediate family and wedding party and then open up the doors to the boozers that want to make fools of themselves on the dance floor, what more could you ask for.  I would assume it is probably less expensive and there is no stressing over centerpieces, meal selections and table linens.  I really do wish my wife had come up with this idea.  I would not have needed any selling, given the fact that when we went to look at invitations I told the lady "I would rather do a mass e-mail".

I think this is an idea in which its time has come.  Unfortunately, too many people feel they need a "traditional" wedding. You know the kind, on a beach somewhere, far away, not in a church surrounded by hundreds of your closest friends and family.  Tell me where, I want to crash it, I will supply the balloon animals.

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife.

NFL: Not For Ladies

Over the past couple of days I have seen a couple of disturbing videos connected to the National Football League.  The first is what is known as the second half of the New England Patriots loss to the Miami Dolphins.  It was, for lack of a better term, pathetic.  As Patriots fan we have come to expect better from our team.  We didn't get it on Sunday.

The second video is the one that has taken the nation by storm.  It is the clip from an Atlantic City Hotel/Casino elevator involving, now former, Baltimore Ravens Running Back Ray Rice punching is wife (then fiancée) in the face an knocking her out.  It is the most disgusting displays of male behavior towards a woman I have ever seen.  How can Rice justify that behavior in any scenario? I was always taught to never lay your hands on a woman, no matter the circumstance.  As a husband and a father of two girls, this video makes me very angry.

When the incident happened Rice was suspended for two games by Roger Goodell, Commissioner of the NFL.  TWO GAMES!  Matt Prater of the Denver Broncos was suspended double that for a DUI of alcohol.  Wes Welker, also of the Broncos was suspended four games for testing positive for amphetamines.  Josh Gordon, of the Cleveland Browns was suspended for a year for a repeat offense of marijuana, which is legal is some states.  So the message that the NFL sent was that smoking weed is worse than beating your wife.  That is a good message to send to your fan base.

That isn't even the worst part of this disturbing display of cover up.  Goodell and the Baltimore Ravens, on Monday, claimed they hadn't seen the video until that day.  I'm calling shenanigans and I think the general public tends to agree with me.  However, following that statement, the Atlantic City Police Department stated that the NFL had access to those tapes and did not ask for them, kind of in a chest thumping manner, as if to say they were much better at this than anybody.  Hardly.

These events just show the ineptness of all parties involved.  Ray Rice and his wife for protecting the paycheck rather than the truth.  The NFL, NFLPA and the Ravens for being absolutely wrong in the way they investigated this, handled it, and then defended Rice's character. Considering how quickly and vigilantly they handle suspensions in their league for off field incidences, they completely dropped the ball on this one and this could leave a constant noose around Goodell's neck.

The interesting statistic to come out of this is that Rice has spent zero time behind bars.  So, for the Atlantic City PD and the DA to make comments that they always had the tapes and they were available to the NFL to investigate, why didn't they use them?  Rice was never charged for anything shown in the footage.  They evidently didn't need his wife to press charges.  Admitting that they had the tapes and seen them all along just shows the incompetence of those parties and they opened themselves up to probably the biggest criticism of all.

I must admit that I am a huge fan of the NFL and that is mainly because they have made it entertaining week in and week out.  That is largely due to what Goodell has done.  But I am not backing him on this, not one bit.  I will continue to watch games and I will continue to buy into the NFL product but if Goodell loses his job over this I will not say one word in his defense.  I have been against him from the start on this and I will continue to be.  He has prided himself in being executioner and chief in all disciplinary matters in the league and the one that should have been an easy touchdown, and he fumbled at the goal line.  He needs to explain why.

I am a believer that public figures do not owe explanations for their misgivings, at least not to me.  But in this instance, I am owed one.  I had bought in to the new NFL and I loved the product and kept coming back.  So, why now, are you going against everything you preach?  Please explain.

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife. 

My Letter to Mr. Augustus.

Dear Mr. Augustus

         We have never met, but I have absolutely heard wonderful things about you.  Over the past several months by reading the Worcester Telegram and Gazette and watching City Council meetings I have come to believe that you can truly walk on water.  I'm just kidding about the water part.  But it has been extremely stated that you have been doing a wonderful job and I have no reason to believe otherwise.

The reason I am writing you is to ask for your help in a very delicate matter.  I'm actually embarrassed to ask for your assistance but there seems to be no other alternative.  I need your help in stopping the mess that is also known as the "City Manager Search".  Please just do us all a favor and reconsider keeping the job you currently hold.  I admire that you are a man of your word, but have you been watching this process?  If a tent was put on it we could sell it to Ringling Bros.

I even have a plan to get you out of your other job at the College of the Holy Cross.  As Director of Community and Government Relations you can tell Rev. Burroughs that your first priority when you get back is to figure out how the college can give back to the community by actually paying taxes to the city.  After hearing that plan you should be free to leave, you may actually get fired for that one.  Sorry about that.

You are our only hope because it is apparent that everyone else involved is either not capable or not interested in replacing you. I tend to believe it’s the latter.  However, if you don’t step up and handle this matter, it will get worse and the city will take a step backwards.  Then we will get stuck with someone who is “not up to the job.

We need you to save us from ourselves, because it took the city to replace your predecessor, who was on the job for nearly a decade, about five minutes.  I didn't realize it would take your entire tenure to find your replacement.

Do us a favor and stay on as City Manager.

Best Regards,

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife.

Ice Ice Baby!

I have had a very enjoyable summer.  Lots of baseball, lots of work and much needed family time.  That is why I have not posted in almost six weeks.  My actions yesterday warranted me getting back on the blogging circuit.  Yesterday, my wife, my oldest daughter and I took the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.  I was challenged three times in a twenty four hour period so I felt the need to oblige.

The other day a fellow blogger, with whom I am longtime friends with her husband voiced her disapproval of this challenge.  She was almost immediately chastised for her disapproval.  I hate to say it people, she is not alone. There have been many skeptics regarding this fad, questioning the accountability of the challengers and challengees (I don’t even know if that is a word).  I truly see their point and that is why I took a different approach when we did our video. 

As the video was playing I embedded eleven facts about ALS, because it is truly about awareness.  That was part of this fad I was very skeptical about.  All the videos I had seen not one person spoke of ALS other than saying they had accepted the challenge.  Although donations have increased roughly one thousand percent from this time last year, is anyone more aware?

If people really read between the lines of the other bloggers article they would have seen that people suffering from ALS is very personal to her.  She has lived through it and all the ice dumping in the world won't change that and it won't certainly bring back her loved one.  For those of you that don't know me, I was born in Italy with three fingers on each hand.  My parents sacrificed much for me including leaving everything they knew behind to make sure I had the care I needed.  Maybe my parents could have tried something like this when they were scraping up money to see specialists.  Maybe my surgeon at the time did not have to circumvent bureaucracies to keep costs down.  So when I see that same surgeon traveling to Asia in retirement to perform cleft pallet surgeries to poor children in dire need of them I help when I can.  It's just personal.

I made the decision to do it not because I didn't want to be called a chicken or didn't want to spend $100, it is because I too knew Daniel Sloan and he was a wonderful man.  I will be donating my piece to the team that is walking for ALS in his name and I urge everyone I challenged to do the same and even the ones I didn't challenge.

RIP - Robin Williams

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife.

Will the Fever Die?

Yesterday the United States was ousted from the World Cup ending a glorious 3 week run in the world's premiere tournament.  Over the past month the country has been on a World Cup high.  Everyone has been talking about it, everyone has been watching it and everyone was rooting for the United States.  The country followed the words of U.S. Soccer's unofficial fan club's mantra "I believe that we will win".  It was sad to see the Red, White and Blue lose.

Being born in Italy and still having roots and close ties to the homeland, soccer (futbol, calcio, etc...) especially the World Cup has always been viewed in my home.  I enjoy the game and I truly love the international tournament.  It's like a World War without the death and destruction.  Now begs the obvious question.  Can professional soccer take off in the United States?  I would love to say yes but I am skeptical.

It is true that the ratings have increasingly gone up each World Cup in the United States.  It is also true that the popularity of Major League Soccer (MLS) has increased and the league continues to expand.  But that is just a viewership thing.  ESPN paid $100 million to broadcast the last two World Cups and they did a masterful job in bringing attention to not only the World Cup but to the sport as well.  They expanded their 30 for 30 series to include "Soccer Stories", which were documentaries about stories of past soccer news, whether it was glorious, tragic or unfortunate.  It had me hooked.

The English Premier League, arguably the best league in the world is now being viewed in the United States and that may possibly help in bring more support for the sport.  But it is not about watching the games, it's about becoming a fan.  The MLS, although expanding, is still a second rate league.  It does not have the star power or the financial backing as the European leagues do and that is where my skepticism comes in.

Americans have all the best professional leagues in the world with the exception of soccer.  Americans do not attach themselves to something that is not the best and this is where this sport will struggle.  United States Soccer and MLS must take notice and strike while the iron is hot.  Although I have rooted for Italy for as long as I can remember, it would bring me much joy to see the United States hoist the World Cup trophy someday.  Come on America, let's join the rest of world.

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife.

My Graduation Advice....Sort Of

With schools having or planning their commencement exercises over the next couple of weeks, graduates will be listening to speeches from esteemed public figures.  Worcester Tech will have the honor of having President Obama speaking at their graduation.  A moment that those students and their families will treasure forever.

Every year at this time I think about the Baz Luhrmann song "Wear Sunscreen”.  The song is a commencement speech to the class of 1999 that was put to music.  Rumor had it when it was originally released that it was a speech that Kurt Vonnegut gave at Yale's graduation.  The truth is that it was a column written in June of 1997 by Chicago Tribune columnist Mary Schmich about how everyone has inside them a little piece of them that would love to give a commencement speech and what hers would be.

It's been fifteen years since I first heard Ms. Schmich's words, and each time I hear them it amazes me how spot on she was.  I won't bore you with the whole speech as I attached links to both the column and the song but her are some of the things I have taken from her words.

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds I know still don't. - I like my job, I don't love my job.  That is probably why I do a million other things to see if I can find the one thing I truly love.  Other than being a good husband and father.  If my boss reads this, I love working for you.

Read the directions, even if you don't follow them. - C'mon!!!! Who doesn't do this?  At what point in anyone's lives do they just bite the bullet and just follow them already?

Get to know your parents. You never know when they'll be gone for good.....My parents live right behind me and there is not a day that I am not grateful for that.  My parents have sacrificed a lot for me and my family does not let them forget our gratitude.

Accept certain inalienable truths: Prices will rise. Politicians will philander. You, too, will get old. And when you do, you'll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders. - I have to admit, I never thought politicians were noble.  Power is a crazy thing and makes people do wild things.  Now, with regards to prices, it's crazy.  The price of gas has gone up almost $2.00 a gallon in a little over a five years.  It has taken Regatta Deli on Lake Ave. almost 30 years to raise the price of their famous grinder the same amount.  Maybe we should put them in charge of the oil industry.

Don't mess too much with your hair or by the time you're 40 it will look 85 - For those of you that have met me, laugh now.

My advice to the class of 2014, since I will most likely never be asked to give a commencement speech, is to capture whatever words are said to you on your graduation day and continue to revisit them.  They may seem boring now, but they will speak volumes later.  Don't use them as a guide but as a point of reference. Don't use them as measuring stick but as a ladder to your goals.  As always, don't forget the sunscreen.  It’s the best advice I ever received.

Congratulations!!!

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife.

Not So Sterling-Silver and the Slippery Slope

The National Basketball Association (NBA) Commissioner Adam Silver on Tuesday banned Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling for life following racist comments he made in private that were recorded.  He was quoted as telling his MGW (Mistress/Girlfriend/Whatever) that he did not want her to bring "black people" to his games and that he more or less did not appreciate her hanging around "them".  While reading the transcripts and listening to what audio I could listen to, this man is appalling in every sense of the word.  However, I am somewhat confused of what has transpired over the past few days.

On Sunday, the day after the audio was released, it is reported that Sterling has a long history of racial discrimination including charges in the NBA and that nobody should be surprised by this.  On the panel discussing these charges was National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Interim President and CEO Lorraine C. Miller.  The NAACP Los Angeles chapter was planning to honor Sterling for a Humanitarian Award, which has since been rescinded.  Sterling was honored by NAACP once before in 2008.  If Sterling has a history of this behavior, is a well-known racist and nobody should be surprised by this outcome, how in the world can an esteemed organization such as the NAACP not only honor him once, but almost twice.  I guess money can buy just about anything.  This is obviously a mistake by the NAACP and I would hope they review their high end donors and honorees after this debacle.

To quote Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban when interviewed about the possibility of forcing a sale of the Clippers by the league "it will be a slippery slope" and it most likely will not happen overnight.  This all goes back to the "history" of this man's behavior, why now?  When he was evicting colored people illegally in rent controlled housing it wasn't an issue? It wasn't an issue when the Department of Justice brought discrimination charges against him and he was quoted as saying that the reason he did not like to African-Americans was "Black tenants smell and attract vermin." and that Hispanics "smoke, drink and just hang around the building,"? Mark Cuban feels that forcing a sale will open a Pandora's Box from special interest groups to pressure league officials into action when people aren't aligned with their views, and he could be right.

The question of the players being able to opt out of contracts because of this was brought up during the press conference and I must say that is not an option.  It comes down to two things.  First, and I keep going back to it, is the history of Sterling, if the agents of these players did their homework rather than go after the biggest contract they would have known this.  Second, when you sell your soul to the devil you live with the consequence.  The NAACP learned that the hard way and they reportedly returned the money Sterling donated.  Will the NBA players wishing to opt out do the same thing? Unlikely!

Donald Sterling is a vile human being.  He is married with a mistress, OUT IN THE OPEN.    When asked about his actions as a landlord his quote was "I own the building, so I can be racist".  He just doesn't care and that compounds the issue.  He was also quoted as saying to an emplyee that reported a request for repairs and refund due to damage "I'm not going to do that, just evict the bitch"

If you have been following this story and are celebrating the decision keep in mind this does not solve the problem.  The players still "play" for Sterling, he still signs the checks.  What does forcing the sale of the franchise do to Sterling?  He stands to make a 480% profit on his investment, just on the sale.  That's showing him.  He will still be a racist, just a half of a billion dollars richer. While the courts haggle over the sale of the team, and they will, does that mean his "ban" mean he doesn't have to pay the bills?  The punishment at this point is on the surface.  This is far from over.

The NBA needs to tread lightly here on how they react to public discourse.  They have opened the door, now it is a matter of who they let in to voice their issues.  Leading to a "slippery slope".

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife

Please Set Me Straight

For the past couple of days I have been pent up with frustration, disgust and anger over the decision that came down on Tuesday in the Justina Pelletier case.  Maybe I am just confused, maybe I am just misinformed or maybe I just don't get it.  So I am asking anyone who reads this and has a differing opinion to set me straight.  Unfortunately for me I have not been able to find anyone to set me straight.  So, I am begging, please set me straight.

For those of you that don't know what I am talking about here is a quick summary from the website www.justiceforjustina.com.  "Justina Pelletier, a 15-year-old from West Hartford, Conn., is in the fight of her life. After being diagnosed and treated for a rare genetic disorder, Boston Children’s Hospital (BCH) overruled the diagnosis and said it was “all just in her head.” When Justina’s parents refused to stop her treatment, BCH assumed custody of Justina and locked her up in the psych ward — against her parents’ wishes. Shouldn’t the parents of this young girl have the right to make decisions regarding her welfare?"

For the past 14 months Justina has been sheltered away from her parents only able to see them for an hour a week under the supervision of the Department of Children and Families (DCF) and the police.  They are not allowed to ask her how she is feeling or how she is doing.  Evidently, Justina is wheel chair bound, legs swollen and her condition that was "in her head" has worsened.

On Tuesday, Judge Joseph Johnston ruled giving permanent custody to DCF in this case.  In reading the ruling I noticed it had nothing to do with what is in the best interest of Justina's treatment but how the Pelletier's hurt the doctors at BCH and DCF officials feeling.  Calling them "Nazi's", swearing at them and threatening to sue.  What has that got do with any of this?  If my children were in this situation the offenses above would be the least of their worries.

These are the facts that I know.  Justina has been diagnosed and treated for mitochondrial disease, which is a very controversial disease and some doctors don't believe it is a valid disease.  This is where the issue starts.  I get if a doctor doesn't believe in a diagnosis, but the actions that are being taken are just far too extreme.   Second, if the Pelletier's are such horrible parents why hasn't the DCF in Connecticut taken any action against them?  Because they refuse to.  They feel there is no basis to get involved.  Lastly, why is DCF fighting so hard on this?  Is it because they have had several misses lately?  Are they trying to flex their muscle? It just doesn't make sense.

I have contacted the Governor’s office, my state rep and Senator Warren to help end this.  I did not contact Senator Markey because I just think he's useless (low blow, sorry).  Needless to say, nobody has contacted me back.  So, I am asking someone on the other side of this argument to set me straight.  Please, don't tell me to get all the facts, I am asking you to present them to me.  I will respect anyone's position on this.  But I need to be set straight.

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife

The Lottery is Not the Problem

The most heinous thing happened the other day and, if true, the man should spend the rest of his life behind bars.  That, however, is the less likely scenario of the situation involving Daniel Snay of Uxbridge.  Snay, a four time convicted Level 3 sex offender was arrested for yet another sex crime against a child.  It was reported that Snay used money that he won on a scratch ticket in 2008 to lure the victim.  So instead of tightening up the incarceration laws in the Commonwealth, Rep. Richard Moore of Uxbridge has proposed a bill that will solve this issue going forward, he wants to ban sex offenders from participating in the Lottery.  That makes almost as much sense as CNN anchor Don Lemon asking if supernatural powers were involved in the missing Malaysian Airlines flight.

Rep. Moore's heart is in the right place, unfortunately as a lawmaker he needs to take the emotion out of it and look at this with a clear head.  The lottery winnings were a contributing factor, not the reason.  If convicted, again, shall the winnings be forfeited? Yes.  But to prevent them from participating?  Not only is that a civil rights violation how you could possibly police that? 

This is where it gets tricky.  If a convicted felon, of any crime is released from prison they have supposedly paid their debt to society and or, are rehabilitated according to parole boards.  If Snay had been released four times by the Commonwealth, the parole board obviously felt he was not a danger to society and would not commit this crime again, or again, or again. Preventing him to purchase a lottery ticket, where the odds are in the millions of him winning, is going to prevent him from committing this act again, or again, or again.

It's staggering to me while watching the news and I hear stories of people getting arrested and I hear it's their "sixth DUI", or it's their "eighth drug charge" or "fourth sexual assault on a child".  There is the problem people.  I am all for rehabilitation, but I am also a proponent of three strikes and you are out, must be the umpire in me.

If we are going to take away the ability of a convicted sex offender to purchase lottery tickets then we need to prevent convicted DUI offender from purchasing cars, convicted arsonists from buying cigarettes or convicted drug dealers from buying aspirin.  If we are going to start banning what they can do on the outside, then why not keep them on the inside.  This is coming from a state that First Degree Murder by a juvenile does not carry an automatic life sentence.

I hope Snay spends the rest of his days in prison, because I know the treatment he will get will be much more appropriate.  But as the lights dim down on this issue the lawmakers should abandon the ban on lottery tickets and focus it more on keeping monsters like Snay behind bars.  The money may have contributed, but he would have continued to do this without the lottery ticket.

3D

If you don't take it from, ask my wife.

Mamma Mia Hit the Mark!

My plan this week was to be preparing for the state title game at the DCU Center on Saturday night.  Well, things happen and we lost in the District Final.  However, my wife had purchased tickets to see "Mamma Mia!" at the Hanover Theater this week.  On Thursday night, the Baseball Widow and I took in the final performance of the three show stop.   I'm not much into musicals but since The Hanover Theater opened we have made it a point to support the local theater and with any hope it will revive the downtown Worcester landscape.

The Baseball Widow really wanted to see this show and made it a point to get tickets.  I had seen it in Las Vegas several years ago, which just goes to show you that gambling and drinking will make you just about anything.  

We arrived about 10 minutes before curtain.  Ironically enough the lady who was sitting next to me introduced herself as "Chelsie Williams, teacher", who just happened to be playing "Sophie", the confused daughter of the main character.  They came down from Windham, Maine to catch Chelsie's performance.  She even told me a story of how her son, who she described looked like a character on "Duck Dynasty" went to see her in St. Louis.

I must say that the show kept me entertained.  I don't know what it is but the band ABBA seems to make everyone reminisce of older times.  I must admit, until Mamma Mia came out I only remembered two ABBA songs, "Dancing Queen" and "Fernando".  Oddly enough, the title track was never on my radar.  As you go through the performance you sense the "They did this song too?"

I thought the acting was good, the orchestra was phenomenal and the singing was mostly on point.  There was one character that was not on key as much as you would expected.  Yet, she was still not worse than Pierce Brosnan in the movie version of the musical.  One point to note that the male lead (Sam, played by Jeff Drushal) reminded me of Jason Sudeikis (Saturday Night Live), I don’t know why.

If you saw the movie and not the theatrical version please refrain from saying that you saw it.  The movie did this show no justice.  Besides the fact that Pierce Brosnan is as good a singer as I am, I feel that movie versions of theater shows are always over directed and miss that range you see in actors.  I would have to say that the only movie depiction that was better than the theatrical version has to be Grease.

But, if you ever get the chance to go see "Mamma Mia!" you must be aware of your surroundings.  For some reason the show really engages the audience and there seems to be dancing, clapping and singing along throughout the whole performance.  There was one woman at the end of our row who thought she was at "Polly Esta's" at every song, including the ballads.  Nothing engages the audience more than the finale.  It is treated somewhat of an encore at a rock concert, where the main characters belt out the two biggest hits, "Dancing Queen" and the title track, as the audience stands up, claps, sings and dances.  If you are one to leave while the actors are taking their bows, then you missed it.

Overall, I would say I enjoyed my night out.  A rare "date night" with the Baseball Widow, supporting a local business and taking a performance of a world renowned show.  If you don't get to see "Mamma Mia!” you should at least get to the Hanover for one of their other shows that come through town.  You will not be upset.

3D

If you don't take it from, ask my wife

Rambling On!

I have not done a rambling in a while, although some of you think I ramble on more than enough.  This week has been a prime opportunity for me to do a "Rambling" because my head would explode trying to figure out which story to write about.

Pregnant Mom Drives Minivan with Children into Atlantic Ocean.  This story gave me chills as I wrote the lead in.  A Daytona mom, who witnesses said was acting odd, drove her minivan, with her children inside, into the Atlantic Ocean.  Thankfully many people nearby sprang into action to stop this and everyone inside the van were saved. The children were put into state custody and local police were still trying to figure out if they had anything to charge the mom with. Hmmm, let me take a crack at it. Child endangerment, attempted murder, reckless driving, assault and battery with a dangerous weapon (car or ocean), not staying within the driving lanes.  Maybe they're right, there may not be anything there.

Up skirting is Legal in the Commonwealth  Man! The Baseball Widow was all worked up about this one and deservedly so.  The Massachusetts SJC ruled yesterday that photographing up a woman's skirt (up skirting) is not illegal. The decision states that a woman on the MBTA wearing a skirt, dress, or the like covering these parts of her body is not a person who is 'partially nude.' The lawyer for the accused was quoted as saying "If a clothed person reveals a body part whether it was intentional or unintentional, he or she cannot expect privacy,”.  Well SJC, you just empowered every woman who rides the "T" to lay the smack down on someone who is up skirting.  Then the perverts are now the victims.  Well played.  Luckily our elected leaders passed a a common sense law that our judicial legislators could not uphold.

NJ Teen sues parents for support after running away The fact that this got in front of a judge is mind boggling.  Luckily the judge rejected this plea.  Maybe I am old fashioned, but if I ever disrespected my parents, the way this girl did, I would not have to worry about suing them.  I am in my 40's and I still don't disrespect my parents like this.  What a joke, and the fact that another parent encouraged and bank rolled this case is even more staggering.  I hope your daughter does to you what this girl is doing to her parents.

Licenses for Illegal Immigrants My argument on this one is not solely on Immigration Reform.  Although, that is the underlying issue here.  The fact that we are giving a group that is described as illegal anything is troubling to me.  The true issue I have with this is the selling point of "safety".   If this is truly about safety then why has there been no legislation about the RMV re-instating licenses to multiple drunk driving offenders, or the fact that drivers over 65 mistakenly hit the gas instead of the brake and they don't have to be re-tested. Why is it just this law that they are promoting "safety" on?   Makes you wonder.

Justice for the Pelletier Family This story is sad and it gets sadder by the day.  The fact that Boston Children's Hospital has the power to do that, scares me.  So much for getting 2nd opinions and if you like your Health Care you can keep it.  This story would not have made the news had this girl's condition improved, it got worse.  Not only that, the hospital and DCF are ignoring daily mental exercises that Justina needs because of her short term memory loss.  Where is the investigation on this type of child abuse?

Good Experience I have used this blog to talk about terrible customer experiences (GM, The Children's Place and Rotmans).  I just want to take time to talk about a good experience I had recently with Keurig and Green Mountain Coffee. After 6 and half years and almost 5,000 cups of coffee our Keurig system kicked the bucket. I called Green Mountain to cancel my recurring order, they asked why and I told them that the Keurig died and we weren't thinking of getting a new one. They fixed that problem, they sent us a new Keurig system, no other questions asked.  I wasn't expecting that and I wasn't looking for that.  We were just looking to move on and they persuaded us to stay.

In closing I want to give a shout out to the Holy Name Lady Naps.  Our team has advanced to the District Final this Saturday at 6pm at WPI against a very good Westford Academy team.  I am one of the many proud coaches you have.  

Also don't forget to spring your clocks forward and hit the parade on Sunday.  The Baseball Widow will be participating in the 5K.  I will be there to cheer her on.

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife

3D's Best Picture Preview

I enjoy watching the Academy Awards every year.  I don't get into the whole "Red Carpet" thing, but I do enjoy watching the ceremony and see the many different films that are nominated. Eight years ago, The Baseball Widow (yes we are close to that time again) and I started a tradition by viewing the films that are nominated for Best Picture and then make our own assessment of who we feel should win the "Oscar".

I must say that eight years ago completing this task was much easier with having no kids and only five movies were nominated.  Add two children and four additional films and we have topped out at seven films over the last 3 years, until this year.  This year we have been able to take in eight of the nine nominated films.  Nine movies is too much and it waters down the award.  I am just glad that the Academy has gone away from the token animated film in the annual field.

Below is my field in order of preference of winning and a brief review:

1. 12 Years A Slave - In a word, Powerful.  This is an amazing story of a man kidnapped into slavery.  I initially thought the movie was slow, but in the end that was what made it so powerful.  The character had no concept of time or location and you feel that in this movie.  Great acting and a great story.  Should win in a walk, but I am not voting.

2. Philomena - I really want this to win.  This movie was great.  As a practicing Catholic I feel guilty for what happened to this women.  Judi Dench was great as always and Steve Coogan was surprisingly good.  I usually don't like British films but this one is a must see.

3. Dallas Buyers Club - Matthew McConaughey's greatest role since "Wooderson" in "Dazed and Confused".  He played a drug addicted, gambling, homophobic, white trash Texan to a T.  The fact that he lost so much weight for this film, that he was skin and bones is a true testament of how much he was in this character.  Jared Leto was so good it that took me about 10 minutes of watching to realize that it was him.

4.  American Hustle - Sorry Worcester, I just couldn't get this movie higher than 4, I even struggled with that.  It was a good movie, don't me wrong, and it is borderline Oscar worthy.  It had a phenomenal cast and some great performances.  That, however, doesn't always translate to an Academy Award.  It slowed downed at one point and you never truly find out the end to the ice fishing story.  It could have been much better.

5. Nebraska - This is my surprise of the field.  I went into this one with no expectations and was pleasantly surprised.  I must say this film is not for everybody and some may think it is not good even one bit.  It was good to see Will Forte play a more serious role other than his Saturday Night Live type cast roles.  Bruce Dern also plays a great absent minded father.

6. Captain Phillips - My ranking is solely based on the theatric version of this story.  I am not going to get into the “is it true/not true” debate.  I wasn't there, so I don't know.  From a film perspective, I thought it was done well.  Good acting and good cinematography.  However, the movie was missing the WOW! factor that I look for in a movie.

7. Gravity - This movie was different.  The best way to describe it was "Castaway in Space".  It was very imaginative and I thought Sandra Bullock was good.  However, this is what happens when the field gets expanded.  I don't think this movie deserves to be nominated and I think the Academy was reaching on this.  I think it would have been better if there was a little more dialogue between Clooney and Bullock.

8. Her (have not seen) - This story doesn't appeal to me and Joaquin Phoenix just bugs me. The Baseball widow protested this movie because it was actually released in January of 2014 and was eligible on some technicality.  The fact that it is not playing anywhere local a month after its release makes me question it. With any luck this may get rated one spot higher.  But it won't be worse than #9

9. The Wolf of Wall Street - I really wanted to like this movie.  How could you not?  I mean, Scorcese, Di Caprio and the get rich story of Wall Street.  I really wanted to like it.  The movie was about forty five minutes to an hour longer than it should have been, it was over the top obnoxious and there wasn't a likeable character in the entire movie.  My suggestion would be to save the money and watch the movie "Boiler Room" twice and call it a day.  A real big disappointment.

That is my take, no wife involved this time.  It was good that seven of the nominated films were depicted on true events.  So, sit down, watch the Oscars, and if you have not caught any of these films, go see any of them, except The Wolf of Wall Street,

3D

Take it from me on this.

It's Good to be Humbled Once in a While

Some people who know me, and read this blog, think I need a good dose of Humble Pie every once in a while.  To all of you that think that, I couldn't agree more.  It's good for the soul.  The other day on this very blog I blasted Rotmans Furniture for their lack of communication in a recent delivery debacle.  I just want to give everyone an update of the past few days.

Since my article ran on Thursday Rotmans has called my house about a half dozen times for various reasons and it was all pleasant. They also initiated a dialogue and asked for my feedback of how they can improve things.  The bed did arrive on Thursday afternoon and my daughter was so excited that she immediately began to organize her room the moment the delivery men left.  She loves her new bed.

Now it's easy to say I am changing my tune, or flip flopping, I'm not.  I am still disappointed over what happened.  But as one of comments read on my blog "Cheer up...this will pass".  I want to tell you what else happened with Rotmans yesterday that did not really have to.  

Last night our family was split up because I was coaching, my wife attended her aunt's 60 Birthday party and the kids were with my parents.  This morning as I went out to get my paper I noticed a box on my front doorstep and it was addressed to my daughters.  I brought it in the house and saw that it was from Vermont Teddy Bear Company.  We immediately thought it was my oldest daughter's godmother or my brother's wife, because both of them rock like that (I hope they are reading this).  My wife opens the box and there were two bears in dresses.  I rummaged through the box and found a card that said this.

"We hope you enjoy cuddling with your teddy bears in your new bed! (Special thanks to Mom & Dad for shopping at Rotmans.  We are truly sorry for the delay in delivering your purchase) - Rotmans"

Wow! I am floored.  I felt I immediately needed to write this.  This was way beyond what I expected or even wanted, but my wife and I are grateful.  I look at it this way.  I never told Rotmans my daughters’ names, they must gotten it from my blog site.  They also got bears for BOTH my daughters.  My youngest has no idea what had happened.  There was also a gift card for my wife and I, which we truly appreciate as well.  That is way too much and I am humbled by this act and I want to thank the team at Rotmans for it.

Before I sign off I want to thank these people who deserve it:

The Delivery Manager - I think his name is Ken.  Although we never spoke you worked hard to get things moving

Britney in the delivery department - You took the brunt of my wrath and never got angry with me.  Thank you

John and Marcus who delivered our bed.  Truly the front line

Barbara in Sales - you were very thorough in the other minor issue that popped up.  Thanks for taking care of it.

The gold star goes to Heidi in customer service.  She talked me off the ledge, took my feedback and listened to my issue rather than talk me through it.  You really nailed it.  If you ever need any more feedback don't hesitate to call me back.  Good Luck to your daughter Friday in her district game.  Maybe we will run into each other at a tournament game.

Thanks Rotmans.  This was a learning experience for everyone.

3D

Humbled and grateful, the wife is too.

Not so Faaaaantastic!!!

I am firm believer in taking care of the local economy.  I rarely eat at chain restaurants, I like to frequent local electronic stores such as Percy's and Vin's TV and during the summer I like to buy vegetables from the local fruits stands.  So when it comes to furniture in Central Mass, Rotman's has always been our selection.  Unfortunately, their lack of communication and customer service were not so great the past couple of days and it makes me thinking about never purchasing there again.

Last weekend my wife and I brought our daughters down to Rotman's to get my oldest (4 years old) a new bedroom set.  We walked around and she got to pick it out (sort of).  We purchased the set and the salesman set up Tuesday delivery for us (2/18).  Now, Tuesday comes and we are hit with a snowstorm.  We have broken down my daughter's room and a friend of mine needed the bed for his daughter, and he came and picked it up.  A risk we were willing to take.  The time they were to come was between 1-5 pm.  At 3:30pm I was leaving to go coach a basketball game, which was a different issue in and of itself, and my wife wasn't sure if the delivery guys were still coming.  I told her to call and see.  She got an answering service and the delivery office closed at 4:00.  Now if that doesn't sound foolish.  The delivery office called back before closing and confirmed that the truck was at the previous stop and they would soon be on their way.  She was outside with the kids in the snow and shoveling to clear a way for the deliverers. The delivery driver called at 3:45pm and left a message on our voice mail saying he would be there in 10 minutes.  My wife, still outside, saw them come to the end of our street, pause and then drive off.  She went inside and saw that they had left the message.  She immediately called the driver's cell, no answer.  She called again, no answer.  She politely left a message and asked him to call her back and explain what is going on.  Nothing.

Since the delivery department is now at this point closed she calls the main customer service number and they tell her now it can't come until next week.  Unacceptable!  The customer service rep puts my wife on hold and calls the driver and he miraculously answers the phone.  The driver told the rep that he did not feel he could get down the street and off with the snow because our street had not been plowed yet.  So now, my daughter who had been excited all day that her new bed was coming is inconsolable and had to sleep with her mattress on the floor (not completely Rotman's fault).

Yesterday morning I call up the delivery office the moment they open and I get a lovely girl named Britney on the phone.  She tells me that the delivery will now not come until tomorrow (today 2/20) because that was the first available date.  I vented my frustration and said the first available date was yesterday (2/18) and that they had dropped the ball and it's not my problem when the first available date was and that I wanted delivery today (2/19).  She tells me she needs to talk to the delivery manager and would get back to me.  I responded with "Please have him call me directly as I would like to get a quote for an article I am writing about this on telegram.com's blog site".  Within minutes, Britney calls back and explains to me the exhaustive efforts that they did and that it would now be delivered today (2/19) between 4-8pm.  I politely thanked her and we hung up.

Guess what did not happen between 4-8pm yesterday? At 7:35 pm last evening the "striker" (delivery man) called and had an extremely nervous tone on his voice as he delivered the news that the truck was stuck in Webster.  He was extremely apologetic and I could tell he legitimately felt bad because he told me that I was the call he had dreaded most to make.  Poor guy, I let him loose and thanked him for the call.  I went downstairs and broke the news to my 4 year old.  This time she took it in stride.

I must say that not delivering when they were supposed to because they were afraid of getting stuck and then not coming the next day because the truck got stuck makes absolutely NO sense to me.  I get that the weather the past couple of days has been nasty and I would like to give these guys the benefit of the doubt.  But you deliver furniture, in the Northeast, during the winter, it's going to happen people. They need to be better prepared, this isn't Atlanta (sorry, low blow).  

I'm not upset that they couldn't deliver the bed because of the weather, I'm truly not.  I'm upset that we had to chase the information.  Not one person was forthcoming with what was going on and the information was only available when I demanded it.  It was as if Rotman’s missing a delivery was not big deal and that it was OUR fault that they had made this mistake.  I don't care what business you are in, that is unacceptable.  

Unfortunately for Rotman's they don't get the hometown loyalty any longer.  They didn't lose my business this time but next time we will be sure to shop around.

3D

Take it from me, because you don't want to ask the wife on this one.

It's Not Personal, Just Sports

This past weekend we saw another ugly incident in the world of sports.  Marcus Smart and Jeff Orr crossed paths for the first, and most likely the last, time.  Unfortunately their encounter caused a national stir and once again started the debate of the behavior at sporting events.

Marcus Smart a basketball player on the Oklahoma State University basketball team went into the stands during a play.  He eventually landed at the feet or lap of Jeff Orr, Texas Tech University booster and fan.  The next thing you see is Orr say something then Smart pushing him before being separated by teammates and officials.  The incident had the potential to escalate to something far more serious and I commend the OSU players for getting Smart out of there.

So what was said that made Smart push Orr?  It doesn't really matter.  Who is at fault in this incident? Everyone involved.  Smart as a competitor, and potential NBA player, should know better that the emotions of the game stay between the lines. NBA player Meta World Peace (a.k.a. Ron Artest), who had the ugliest athlete/fan incident in sports history said that Smart can learn from this "...those types of challenges on the court when you're playing and fans are rooting against you -- that was a great lesson learned, so that hopefully when he does become a pro, he'll be able to kind of withstand the fans that are rooting against him on the road."

What about Orr? The argument can be made that he is a paying fan and he can say whatever he wants.  Technically, I guess that is true, but just because you pay to do something or go somewhere doesn't give you the right to act like a jerk.  Just look at all the season tickets the New England Patriots confiscate for behavior related reasons each year.  But Orr called a kid a "piece of crap", really?  If he felt compelled to say that about a college kid, far be it from me to judge.  But what a nerd.

This is the problem with sports fans.  We, as a society, have put so much focus on supporting our teams that nobody can enjoy the game.  I wrote about this a few months back when a fan was stabbed to death outside of a sporting venue.  This pales in comparison, but it's in the same category.  If I had been in Orr's seats and Smart came running at me I would have commended him on good effort.  That's just me I guess.  I just don't get to the point where I need to mock players on the other team or their fans.  My take on it is, don't say something to someone at a stadium that you don't have the guts to say to them in a room by yourself.

There was speculation that Orr used a racial slur.  I am not going to comment on that because it is unfounded and I don't think Smart would have apologized (as he did publicly) to Orr for shoving him if he had.  Smart received a 3 games suspension for his role in incident, which I feel is appropriate.  I do want to point out that OSU, Smart, Coach Travis Ford and Orr have all conducted themselves very well in the aftermath.  As I stated before, this had ugly potential all over it.

To all fans going to games.  Cheer, maybe a little distractible heckling, but NEVER make it personal.  You don't know them and they don't know you

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife.

Happy Returns....or maybe not!

As a parent of two little girls nothing beats watching your children open up presents from Santa.  Unfortunately there may be a time when the gifts that are opened may not make it out of the box or the tags removed.  For example, yours truly purchased a gift for his niece which, unbeknownst to me, was on her list to Santa.  Oops!  Santa was scrambling at 9:00pm Christmas Eve to make it up.

With little ones, chances are they will receive clothes for Christmas.  It may be very likely that the child either has the clothing already or the wrong size was purchased.  Easy fix, just bring it back to the store where it was purchased and get the correct size, correct?  Not exactly, especially for Jessica Falcone of Worcester.  

Ms. Falcone received some outfits for her two boys as a gift and they were too big for the children.  Rather than wait for the children to grow into them she decided to bring them back to "The Children's Place" and get the correct size or store credit if they did not have the right size.  She did not ask for cash.  Her return was "denied".  The reason for denial was not what you think it was.  The denial was because she had made "too many returns".  I have never heard of that and how do they know she made too many returns if she did not have a receipt.  According to Ms. Falcone they knew because they scanned her license and that's what came up.  Creepy!!!

Ms. Falcone decided to call the customer service number and it was the same result. "The man was extremely rude and even had the gall to hang up on me" Falcone said.  "I am supposed to just keep the items now and they don't even fit my children, because I reached a return limit? I am so disappointed."

Ms. Falcone then decided to post her displeasure on Facebook.  The Children's Place responded and asked her to provide more information.  Even though they were very polite, their tune did not change and their request was even more ridiculous.  The representative asked Ms. Falcone to provide:

Store where the purchase was made, date of the transaction, estimated time of the purchase, amount of the transaction and payment method (if payment method was a credit/debit/gift card, please include the last four digits of the card). 

"It is utterly embarrassing to call the person who bought the clothes and ask her soooo many questions about the purchase.  They even want an estimated time of transaction??" she said

Nothing says thank you like getting the third degree about the purchase and if you can please provide me some of your credit card information.

I understand that retail stores need to have stringent return policies because of theft and fraud, but this is insane.  The representative was right, The Children's Place has a return policy that states "We reserve the right to limit returns regardless of receipt." What does that even mean?  When it comes to children's toys and clothes there needs to be some leniency around the holidays, no cash needs to be exchanged, but a swap should be allowed.

In a Christmas season where there was one of the largest credit breaches this country has seen, shoppers will be more on edge next year and if companies want to keep them they need to work with them, not against them.  The Children's Place needs to do the right thing and allow Ms. Falcone to exchange the gifts.  This is about doing the right thing, not Ms. Falcone's shopping tendencies.

They are just lucky my wife wasn't returning anything.  It would not have been pretty.

3D

If you don't take it from me, ask my wife