Tuesday is the best day of the week.

We often hear folks saying how much they are looking forward to the weekend and how much they dread Mondays or how much they look forward to Friday. But to be realistic for everyone concerned, Tuesday has got to be the best day of the week; hands down it’s definitely the most productive and least stressful day of the week.

Let’s look at this from a logical viewpoint. Let’s start with Wednesday or “Hump Day.” When Wednesday comes around it usually starts off well enough with nearly as much productivity as Tuesday, but by lunch it becomes convoluted with thoughts of the weekend and of what needs to be done in the next two days to get ready for the weekend.

Then Thursday rolls on in and the “one more day till the weekend” thought train wreaks havoc with the whole day. Concentrating on work goes right out the window as the thoughts of the weekend and what it might bring will most assuredly confuse everything.

Friday breezes in and before anything gets done, everyone is contemplating what minimal amount of work they can do to call it a “productive” day and then there is the concentration on how to be the first person out of work in order to start the weekend.

Saturday is a jumbled mess of trying to recover from Friday (or Friday night) and getting to the plans we have for the day. And what if there are no plans? Well then there is that perceived need to find something to do so as not to spoil a perfectly good day off from work.

Sunday is church, possibly recovering from Saturday night, and the preparation for the work week to come. Also there is the possibility cleaning up from the weekend that is tailing off; however, this is optional and can be left to Monday evening.

Next up, we fall into Monday only begrudgingly as we ponder where all the time went to do what we had planned over the weekend. Little if any productivity comes from Monday as everyone is trying to get back on track from a couple of days off. By the end of the day we are more prepared for the week but still dreading the remainder of the work week to come.

But Tuesday, well that is the day where last weekend is a distant memory and the up-coming weekend is still too far away to concern ourselves with. As a result, we concentrate better on Tuesday, have less distractions, and get much more accomplished that on any other day of the week. Think about it, there is no need t prepare for the weekend yet. If something needs to be done there is still three more weekdays to complete it. So with none of the pressures and distractions of the rest of the week, Tuesdays are most definitely the day of choice.

Maybe I’ll just pretend everyday is a Tuesday….

How many days until Friday again???
Bill

Grow the Big 12?

First of all just let me say that if A&M wishes to go to the SEC good for them; however, it reminds me of the old proverb (some folks say Chinese but my Grandfather used to say it and he wasn’t even close to Chinese). “Be careful what you wish for, you just might get it!” In other words, if history is any clue, look out because the move to the SEC was hardly what Arkansas thought it would be.

But with the departure of A&M, what the Big 12 may need to do is look to go bigger, not smaller, or back to twelve. Let’s be proactive in this mess and create the first BCS super-conference. Of course with the current leadership decisions the Big 12 has made, I am not sure they are well equipped to handle this subject, but I’ll make my proposal anyway.

Here it goes!!

So A&M leaves and the Big 12 goes to nine (9) teams so they’ll need seven (7) more to reach the super-conference level. Of course Television markets are always important so let’s look at where a sample of the Big-12’s current markets sit. With our current members we have the following:
31 – Kansas City
45 – Oklahoma City
49 – Austin
88 – Iowa (I think the list has every major Iowa town on it)
94 – Waco-Temple-Bryan
143 – Lubbock

Not looking all that impressive, but before you say it, yes I know we pull a lot from Dallas and Houston, but that’s not where the home of our schools are. So now let’s take a look at my suggestions, and remember, these are just my suggestions and they’re only offered as a good natured look at the subject; so all you haters out there keep your comments to yourselves.

First off most Big 12 schools not in Texas want to keep the number of Texas schools somewhere less than the Non-Texas Schools so we’ll only include three new Texas additions to keep that point of view in mind. I’ll list the additions in regards to their Television markets (Texas teams first so as not to confuse anyone).

SMU – Sits soundly in the No. 5 TV market in the country and has already been harping about joining.

U of H – The No. 10 Houston TV Market would help solidify the conferences foothold on Houston.

UTSA – Yes I know they’re only in their first season of football but they had 50,000 plus at their first game, they play in the Alamodome, and they are located in the No. 37 TV Market in the Country. Plus they’re the Roadrunners – Awesome Mascot!!

Air Force – Regains a foothold into Colorado, they play in the 91 ranked TV market but are just south of the 18th TV market in Denver. Plus it’s always good to have a service academy in your conference.

Memphis – Great basketball, improving football, and the No. 48 TV Market helps hold the Missouri Valley Region with the Kansas schools and Missouri. And on the up-side, an occasional trip to Beale Street is always a good reason to travel to Memphis.

Tulane – Yes Tulane; I know they’re probably not what most people have in mind but they live in the No. 53 TV market, play their home games in the Superdome, and let’s face it, wouldn’t we all like the occasionally road trip to New Orleans every couple of years – YEAH!!!!

BYU – While the TV markets they are located in are relatively small compared to the rest, they already have their own television network and bring a prestige with them from the west that nicely compliments bringing in the Air Force Academy and is a major improvement to what we had out west before!!

NOTE: For you TCU fans out there, I would love to have TCU in the conference; however, unless TCU’s plans have transformed and they have changed their opinions of the Big 12, they made it clear last year they were not interested in being in the conference and wanted to move to the Big East. But if that has changed, I would highly recommend finding a way to bring them in also.

Well there you have it. These are my recommendations, of course they will probably go no further than this blog, but they’re fun to look at and think about. Who knows, maybe some of these teams will get the chance to play in the Big 12.

Sure would like the trip to New Orleans!!
Bill

The Captain Obvious Study of the Year!!

Have you ever really wondered about where all that increased college tuition money goes; or maybe what that tax-payer funded grant money is used for in the World of Academia? Well let me shed some light on the subject for you.

Billions of dollars are spent each year on studies, surveys and research all in the name of making America and the world a more healthy, friendly and civilized place to live. But are all of these surveys really necessary? Let’s check one out.

This week the results of a 20 year Harvard study were released to the public showing which foods pose a greater risk for causing obesity. Now bear in mind this study took 20 years so please do not laugh at the results.

Overall the results showed that people who ate more potato chips, red meat, sweets, and drank sugary sodas gained more weight over those 20 years than those who ate more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts, and drank water…..REALLY?

And when I say REALLY I mean it not because I am surprised by these results, but because I’m not sure we really needed a 20 year study to come up with these results. Think about it, for 20 years someone got paid to conduct this study. AMAZING!!

So, in the quest for a more civilized humanity I am offering my services to the public for free on some other issues I find are simple to understand, but might require a “study” for academics to figure out.

1. People who drink alcohol are more likely to get drunk than those who drink water. I promise you it’s the truth!

2. People who smoke are more prone to throat and lung cancer than those who don’t smoke at all.

3. People who chop broccoli for a living are more prone to lose a finger than those who don’t chop broccoli for a living. I swear, I am not making this up!

4. Beekeepers are more prone to be stung by a bee than those who do not keep bees.

Well, I could go on for a while but I would probably be in line for a lawsuit having exposed the results of some Scholar’s lifelong study. I hope I haven’t, I would hate to think somewhere out there was a hardworking researcher out of a job because I exposed the concept that short people find it harder to see on top of the refrigerator than tall people do (oops, sorry about that).

Anyway, as always I am just trying to bring a little common sense into the world. I Hope this helped y’all.

Now where’d I put my Potato Chips?
Bill

TSA Gone Amuck – Part 1

I began this blog several years ago in an attempt to enlighten folks as to the proper use of common sense. Well I think it is time I got back to it. As many of you know, I have sworn off flying. Not because of the safety in the air issue, but because of the security on the ground issue. After more than 2,400 hours in naval aircraft I can assure you flying is still one of the safest modes of travel there is; however, I still refuse to fly in a commercial airliner….unless my wife forces me.....um, er, I mean insists that I do.

Here is one example of why I refuse to fly. A few weeks ago, a family heading to Disney World was taking their turn through the TSA fondling and privacy invasion center in the Detroit Metro Airport. During this dazzling procedure, those geniuses decided that a 29 year old mentally retarded man posed a serious risk and needed an intense pat down. The 29 year old man has the mental capacity of a 2 year old and when asked to step to the line he did not understand what to do. When they asked him questions about his travel itinerary he could not answer them. Thinking the man to be uncooperative the agents felt he was a security risk and needed a special screening.

At this point they noticed the padding under his pants and felt this man to be a serious security risk. When the man’s father spoke up in an attempt to explain the situation, the valiant TSA agent stepped forward and told the father, “Please, Sir, We know what we are doing.” With this the TSA agents began their investigation of the scared man and his padding only to find an adult diaper “hidden” in his pants. At this point, with egg on their face, the over-righteous TSA officers decided to check the man for contraband at which time they found a hammer in his possession!

That’s right; this mentally challenged man had a hammer…of the six-inch, hollow, plastic, toy variety – Oh Thank God!!! When the father then tried to explain that the toy was his son’s security blanket and not going to cause any harm, the genius in the TSA uniform hit it on the wall and told the father, “See, it’s hard, it could be used as a weapon.” During this time the man became upset at having his dangerous TOY taken by the TSA.

Yes sir you heard me right; The TSA agent confiscated the toy hammer. Then the TSA agents told the parents that if they wanted to have it sent to Orlando they could arrange shipping; however, with the lightning quick speed that the TSA works, there was no time to ship it so they had to leave it with the agents who disposed of it.

Thankfully, the boys Mom (surely trained by the CIA, Mossad, or the KGB) used the craftiness of James Bond to smuggle a second toy hammer onboard by placing it…..in her purse!!! Mercifully the man’s was reunited with what at the very least was a replacement for the long-held security toy he had been so unfeelingly separated from.

Later TSA officials apologized for their agents handling of the situation and called it a onetime incident – REALLY? I did a short search on Google and came up with several others but I will wait to write about those later, I think they deserve their own time in the spotlight.

All of this sounds amazing, right? No!

This sort of incident is more common than you think and comes from a lack of common sense that permeates our society and it is up to us all to combat it at every level. I mean if there is any doubt that these people need help all one needs to do is check out the people of Wal-Mart website. How you help is up to you. I write this blog and make snide comments in the hopes that via these comments they’ll “get it.”

But while these people work for the TSA, I will not be patronizing the air transportation industry anytime soon…..Well, unless my wife tells me to.

Until next time…..
Bill

Don’t Taze My Granny!!

I don’t mean to be tellin’ no stories, but this is just Pure Grade A “Oklahoma.”

A man in El Reno, Oklahoma found his elderly, bed-ridden Grandmother in a state of confusion and unable to tell him what medications she had taken. She was so out of sorts that he felt he should call EMS to come out and check Granny.

Prior to the EMTs showing up, three of El Reno’s finest showed up to “help” out. When they approached the elderly and bed-ridden 86 year old lady (in her bed) they said she was confused and incoherent while being aggressive towards them. Apparently, Granny was unsure of who these men were and went into a protective pose….bed-ridden of course.

As these police officers began to demand that Granny back down, she apparently felt more threatened and pulled a kitchen knife at which point the officer in charge reportedly demanded the bed-ridden 86 year-old back down or she would be tased. At this point, the grandson said, “Don’t taze my Granny.”

With that the police officers subdued the grandson, handcuffed him and placed in the back of a patrol car. Then the officer in charge said he felt even more threatened when Granny took a more aggressive stance in her bed – REALLY? With that, she was tased until she passed out. Then she was taken to a hospital and admitted for eight days of psychiatric evaluation – OUTSTANDING!!

Well, as usually happens in one of these cases, Granny and her unappreciative grandson are suing the El Reno Police Department and the officers for $75,000.00. I guess the only questions I have for the three police officers is what was the deal. You couldn’t wait her out.

I mean when my bed-ridden grandma was alive she could last about 30 minutes before she fell asleep. Here’s a tactic, just stand still and don’t make any sudden moves. She’ll eventually get bored and those eyebrows will get heavy causing her to fall asleep, then you could all three jump on her and take her down…oh wait….she’s already in bed.

Maybe they could have just talked her out of it. I mean just speaking with the women in a calm and soothing voice may have reassured her that they were there to help. Oh, here’s one, how about getting the grandson involved and have him say something real technical like “Granny, these gentlemen are here to help you.”

I don’t know, maybe I’m being naïve but when we worry about how to juke an 86 year-old bed-ridden women with a kitchen knife and just go ahead and tase her, well I think we have some discussing to do on our people skills and the judicious use of Common Sense.

Mark El Reno, Oklahoma off my list of retirement communities,
Bill

Some Things You Always Remember.

They say there are times in your life that stick with you always and help to make you them person you are. I can think of several of those times that are stuck in my mind and when the anniversary of those dates come up I think about them. This year marks the 20th anniversary of one of those days.

In March of 1991 I was a young Airman aboard the Aircraft Carrier USS Abraham Lincoln while we were working through our Battle Group Evaluation in preparation for our upcoming deployment to the Arabian Gulf. It was an awesome time in my life. I was on top of my game, moving my way up the ladder, newly married with a beautiful baby boy, and looking forward to going on deployment – Living the Adventure. This was the first step in the tactical and operational side of being in the Navy and I was really enjoying it. It was like we were in a dream world of some sci-fi movie, but life was about to take an abrupt turn that would snag us all back to reality.

On the evening of March 20th and the early morning of March 21st I was working a tactical station in the Antisubmarine Warfare (ASW) Module aboard Lincoln. We were simulating wartime operations off the coast of Southern California. From Lincoln we were working the radios giving tactical information to the P-3C antisubmarine aircraft working with the battle group.

Over the course of the first aircraft’s on-station time, myself and our radar operator spent about six hours on the radio with the initial aircraft and later spent time with the second plane coming on-station to relieve the initial Plane. Around 2:30 am the two aircraft began talking to each other and turning over the submarine prosecution. Shortly after the two aircraft began this procedure we received radio communications from one of our helicopters and one of our escort ships saying they had just seen a large explosion and flames coming from the direction of the two P-3C aircraft.

As the initial shock of the situation wore off, we realized that our simulated battle scenario had just turned into a full scale real-time Search and Rescue (SAR) Mission. Working in the world of Aviation Antisubmarine Warfare in the Navy means that you are a member of an extremely small community of people who tend to know just about everyone else in your field. So the thoughts of possibly trying to save someone you knew became very real for us all; however, the reality of the situation was that these were two very large aircraft and there was very little chance that these two aircraft were not destroyed along with their crews. We would later find out that our fears were realized and that 27 of our friends had paid the ultimate price.

We spent the next couple of days coordinated and conducting SAR ops while only pulling wreckage from the water. Sometime during that period a small contingent of officers from the two planes’ squadron came to the carrier to begin the process of investigating the events to determine how this all happened. With them they brought a list of people onboard those aircraft and everyone involved in the ASW and SAR effort on Lincoln knew someone on that list. For me it was a young man I went through aircrew school with and later was at primary school with. He went to P-3’s and I got to go the Boat. I can remember when we got our orders how jealous I was initially, then thinking during that time how glad I was to be on the boat, and then later how bad I felt for feeling that way.

When we returned home I was glad to be home and held my wife and child with a newfound thankfulness to be with them. Later I would testify at the official board of inquiry. I would not wish that on anyone, especially when the families are there. There is no real way to comfort a family who just lost a loved one and I felt helpless to do anything for them. It made me think hard about how someone would have to comfort my wife should something happen to me. It was my biggest fear while serving in the Navy. I also learned that while having a career as a Navy Aircrewman was and is one of the best career paths a sailor can have, it can also be one of the most dangerous – and harshest.

I look back on that time and it is still as hard to think about now as it was to deal with then. How simple and fragile life truly is and how much we make of the things that we should probably let go of. I still get fired up about things from time to time and still overreact about things (probably more often than I should – my wife tells me so). But I always think about it later and then think about those times in life that make you realize how small some of those annoyances truly are and should be. It was twenty years ago today that one of those events happened.

Take Care Brian,
Bill

Unions

Unions have become one of the big issues in the last few weeks and it looks like the White House will use the unions and their support of unions as a main campaign issue in 2012. Lord knows the current administration doesn’t want to campaign on their horrendous foreign relations record, economic track history, nor their healthcare debacle, but that is another issue. It is important to look at the unions to view their positive attributes and their negative attributes.

Now I know this will startle many of my liberal friends, but I believe unions have been an important and a generally positive part of our society for a long time. Whether you are pro-union or anti-union, the truth is that unions do serve an important purpose in America and that at the same time there are unfortunately too many union officials taking advantage of their positions.

Because of unions, we have safer places to work, better standard working hours, health benefits, retirement benefits and a better life for the various individuals who work in the various industries in America. The theory of how unions work and what they can do for their members is commendable when it is kept to its theoretical base and used as it is designed. All too often the union officials regrettably take over and take a union in a direction that would probably not be supported by a majority of union members.

This can occur when union members pay their dues and then have little to no idea of how those dues are spent or on what campaign they are given too. Many people think this can simply be rectified by the union members leaving the union if they disagree with the direction the union is going and it does in many states, but in some industries workers must join a union to work and in some states (Such as Wisconsin, Ohio, and Indiana – Sound Familiar) there is no right-to-work law and anyone working in that state must join a union to work there. Even if they don’t want to be a member they still have to pay money to those unions for the privilege of having a job in that state.

This Forced Union philosophy many times motivates better workers to leave these states for right-to-work states. Basically then the unions and these forced union states are all too many times left with a working class that is looking to do the minimum work at a maximum Price. This Forced Union philosophy also limits the expansion of business into those states because many businessmen would rather do business in a right-to-work state.

Public Unions are also important and also have their problems, but unlike those of the private sector they must not be allowed to make political donations – AT ALL. Private unions should be able to give money to political movements or politicians if the membership agrees with it based on membership voting; however, since Public Unions are potentially negotiating directly with the very politicians they donate to, how can we be assured those politicians are actually looking out for the tax payers best interest and not handing over the purse government’s purse strings – your purse strings.

Unions can be and are great organizations when they truly work for the betterment of their membership. There is no problem when they do so. It becomes a problem when union officials move behind the scenes and control their organizations and politicians through coercion and scheming.

So if the unions are to continue to be effective they must realize that to work in the modern media environment they must learn to work in the Right-to-Work atmosphere. They must learn to work with the people they represent and utilize the marketing of their positives to attract members and not just rely on Forced Union laws to garner their membership and conduct business any way they see fit to do.

So in the end, it seems that unions are like every other organization working for the betterment of people. That is because even with the sincerest of purpose, the best of intentions and the highest regards for the membership, there is one thing that can undermine progress to be made by a union and that is the greed of those at the top. Not all unions have this problem, but clearly there are too many that do and because of that a growing majority of Americans are beginning to have a negative view of unions.

Sincerely,
Bill