My 4th of July Plans

I've been helping out with one of the Mattoon Babe Ruth League teams.
I got selected to help out with the 15 year old all-star team.
So to gear up for our quest to the Babe Ruth World Series, we are playing in a tournament this week in Indy.




Follow my twitpics this weekend.

So that's what I'm doing for the 4th.
What are your plans?

I got certified.

This summer I'm volunteering as an assistant coach for one of the local baseball teams in Mattoon.
Its 13-15yrs old.
I'm helping out with the 15yr old all-star team, so I had to take the Babe Ruth League course and complete the test.



Do you help coach?

Enjoying my summer

This summer I've had the opportunity to combine two loves.
My love to play baseball + teenagers = helping coach 13-15yr summer league team
Babe Ruth league

My two views.

As first base coach.


As bp pitcher


What do you do in the summer?

What a Great Day

Went to the Cards vs Astros game today, with Brian.

Why was it a great day?
Oswalt started
Wainwright went the distance (9 innings)
Cards win it in the bottom of the ninth
Two long homers from Berkman (400ft and 424 ft)
Heard See You Again on the radio atleast 3 times
We sat about 10 rows behind Cards dugout.



Notice Brian is sporting his US Cellular Hat.
It was hat day.

High Ropes Course

Yesterday I had meetings with the funnest people on the planet. Youth pastors.
We spent about an hour at Eagle Crest Adventure, going thru the high ropes course.

I rigged up and got up in the course with several other guys.
Here was my spotting partner Ray.


1st Task - Balance Beam. Walk from one side to the other. 15 feet high, 30 feet long. Easy.
2nd Task - Balance Beam. Walk from one side to the other. 15 feet high, 30 feet long. Blindfolded. I thought this was going to be Easy. I put the blindfold on, I took one step out, and I got shaky. It was freaky. I couldn't do it. I had to hold onto my safety rope while I walked the beam. So much for being a wild man. eh.

Dead Man Walking

I went paint balling for the first time in about a year and a half.

Pre-game


Post-game (I used the paintball juice to make a faux hawk)

Super Bowled Out

I bowled my highest game of the night, in my first game. 145.

Tonight was The Pipeline's Super bowl party. We rented out the Mattoon Bowl bowling alley for 4 hours. That is a lot of bowling. There is probably something like 12 lanes there. We collectively bowled over 150 games!!

Out of gas.

Let's just say that I'm not going to Beijing 08.

my nike runs
tune your run

Mizzou Lost

...But I was on the jumbo tron tonight.

Busch Braggin Rights...Memories

Tonight is the game of the year for me and my college basketball watching experiences.. Each year University of Missouri play the University of Illinois in St. Louis, in a series called Busch Braggin Rights. Mizzou is in an 7 game skid in the series.

This will be my 16th year in a row going to the game, I have seen 6 Mizzou wins since then in the series. 1992 was my first ever college basketball and more importantly my first MU game. My brother had gotten four tickets to the game (the arena is split up with a MU side and a U of I side. Gold on one side, Orange on the other side), and these tickets where on the Orange Side. One of my brother's friends didn't want to go, so guess who got the ticket, and 16 years later we have this huge tradition.

Here are some memories that i have of the series, in no particular order (popularity nor date).

non game highlights
Meeting with everybody that is going at the game, at the top of the escalator in Union Station.
Eating at the Union Station food court.
Walking into Union Station hearing drunken chants of "MIZ-ZOU or ILL-INI".

at the game
Dan Reynolds getting pulled over for speeding (1992).
Dan getting beer spilt on his leather jacket from the people sitting above us.
Sitting in the car after the game, in the parking lot ready to leave, and the lady next to us, gets into their car, and opens their door into Dan's car.
Sitting a couple seats down from former Mizzou star Jason Sutherland at a game, post his Mizzou Career.
Garrett wearing his Indiana sweatshirt.
Standing the whole game with Garrett in our seats, which were top row at half court, while his wife sat in the lower bowl next to Whitey Herzog.
Going down to the game, without tickets, and buying 2 scalped tickets for $35/each with Josh Hall. We told the guy all we had was $35 a piece, as we paid him, he goes, "guess you won't have popcorn money." Turns out they were 2 single tickets, we had no clue where the seats were, so we just each grab a ticket. I ended up 10 rows off of the floor on some metal risers, while Josh was in the Upper Bowl.
Ryan Smith forgot his ticket at home, so I went into the game, and took my stub and my brother's stub, and got my hand marked with a black light stamp, and went outside and found ryan, and rubbed my hand on his, and gave him my brother's stub, and got him into the game. Luckily didn't get arrested.
Having tickets all over the place, from upperbowl to the lowerbowl, from center court to the corners, from the gold side to the orange side.

game highlights
Watching freshman, illini, Kiwane Garris miss a pair of free throws, with tied game, and no time on the clock. - a package arrived later to Garris in Champaign that contained two bricks.
Taunting Andy Kaufman.
Rickey Paulding's acrobatic dunks.
Watching a Mizzou fan tackle Chief Illiniwek.
Coach Quin Synder (Mizzou coach) getting popcorn thrown on him by a Mizzou fan at halftime

Another Illinois Game...

Went with a couple of the guys from the church and some student from the pipeline to watch Illinois play Miami University (Ohio) tonight. And Illinois lost. I'm looking forward to the Mizzou game on saturday, debating on what to wear. I'm going to blog about my tradition of going to the MU vs U of I game on saturday. I'm going to do kind of a highlights of years past.

Here is a pic from tonight. I thought it was cool, because I'm in focus, yet the background is like motion blurred; yet its not photoshopped.

Scouting for the Busch Braggin' Right Game

Last night i went to my first U of I game at the Assembly Hall. I've seen the Illini play 15 times, once a year for the past 15 years, but this was the first time at the Assembly Hall. Thanks Jeremy.
I was there doing a little scouting for the MU vs U of I game this saturday. After watching the Illini play a horrible Western Carolina team last night, I don't think Mizzou has anything to worry about.



Also Future Gen selected Mattoon as the site for their clean coal-fired power plant.

first softball game in a while

i had a hard time hitting the ball tonight. seemed like i couldn't the ball in the air. but finally at my 5th at bat, i hit one down the right field line, and got an inside the park home-run. then 2 at bats later, i did the same thing. except this time, as i ran across home plate, and as i was high 5ing the team, and walking into the dugout, i got pegged in the back with the ball. i guess the other team had slow reactions or something.

First Little League Game

Last night was the first night that I've ever helped with a little league team. 3 brothers from The Pipeline play together on the same team, so i was able to keep score for them last night. It was cool. We won 7-3.

Here was my view was the dugout.


Another mac fan sighting at Wal-Mart.

My First Minor League Baseball Game

I'm in Peoria for a couple days for IDCAG meetings. So last night, travis and I decided to go to the minor league class a peoria chiefs (cubs) vs lansing lugnuts (bluejays) game. It was Mt. Dew Half Price Mondays, so we got the Row 1 behind the chiefs dugout.

The automosphere was way different then the majors. The skill level was pretty bad. There was a bunch of cheesy mid-inning crowd teasers. The game went into extra innings, and it seemed like as the innings past more people would leave. Finally in the 11th innings we decided to move from our seats and seat directly behind the plate, in row 1.

The coolest thing was that Ryne Sandberg was the head coach. And the chiefs knew it, so everything was centered around him and not the players or the team.

going, going, not gone

Yesterday was katie's birthday.


Tonight was my first softball game for the year. My first pitch i swung at, was a miss. ouch! Ended the night 2 for 3; with 2 inside the park homers and 5 or 6 RBIs.

Luke took a picture of one swing.

St. Louis Game

Katie and I and a couple friends went to the cards game last night.

Jam Finger, Guitar Award and the Flume

I haven't played basketball for atleast 6 months, and I have played twice within a week. Here is the results of last night's game at the YMCA; a jammed finger.

Received this in the mail today from the Guitar Hero competition at Target youth leadership conference. I also found a great place for it.


Katie and I went out to Spring Lake for a walk and I found some inspiration.

WIU Head Coach Leadership Thoughts

thoughts on leadership from don patterson wiu's head football coach

1. Good Value System
2. Be consistent with your beliefs and actions
3. Loyalty to others, during both good and bad times
4. Teamwork, place others above yourself
5. develop a sense of honor
6. a quiet self-confidence
7. strong self-esteem
8. show compassion to your fellow man
9. accountability to other, never let down another man
10. great work ethic
11. show sportsmanship
12. be a good listener
13. show your sense of humor
14. recognize your limitations
15. share the responsibility of all loses and setbacks
16. don't be afraid to tell them that you love them

New Years Eve Bowling