Death of Tradition

So the college football landscape is getting turned on its head again. Mass chaos among the conference alignments (the Big 12 in particular). Very sad to see all of the traditional rivalries that we have grown up with going away. My entire life, I've known the Texas-OU game would be about the 2nd week of October, Texas-A&M would be played at Thanksgiving, and there would be other entertaining matchups to look forward to with our other in-state rivals. If everything goes down as it is expected to now, what rivalries will we have to look forward to? Want Texas-OU? Sorry, you get OU-Arizona. Want Texas A&M-Texas Tech? Sorry, you get A&M-Vanderbilt. You get the picture. This may mean more money for some schools, but it is certainly the death of tradition.

Okay, what now? Texas-Texas A&M Divorce

Let's face it, Aggies and Longhorns love to hate each other. I have some really good friends that are Aggies so hate may be a bit of a strong word, but it fits in many instances. So every year for the last 100 years or so, this rivalry, this yearlong back and forth has been able to be resolved on the football field and one side of the rivalry has "bragging rights" for the next year. So now A&M is bolting for the SEC and all the traditions, the yearly rivalry, and everything that goes with it will be gone. It is possible that they could schedule games in the future, but I will bet it doesn't happen for a while (it will take a while for wounds/egos to heal). So where does all this "energy" get channeled now? Do Texas and A&M just forget about each other? I doubt it. It is all very unfortunate. I am a traditionalist and I really hate to see the rivalry go away. Although I understand it is big business, so I can direct my "angst" at those in charge (at both schools) and not direct it at my Aggie friends who had no control over it.
So, if we are not to be rivals anymore, do we just try to get along? Settle our differences in a different way? Arm wrestling?
It's strange times in college football right now. I am sad to see big business overlook any sense of tradition and simply look out for number one. But that is the world we live in.

Coaching/Parenting

Just finished up another year of coaching baseball. Truthfully, I was hoping to avoid coaching this year, but since I do it every year, they called me and asked me to do it after I did not initially volunteer. I do usually enjoy it. And, I'm sure I would get really frustrated if I did not do it and someone who knew nothing about baseball ended up coaching my kids. I was reflecting on how I usually coach the kids. I notice that I tend to try and be extra encouraging to some of the kids that may not be very athletic and struggle, and I also tend to be somewhat hard on the kids that I know are capable of playing well. Of course, I am hardest on my own kids. Considering these things, I was reflecting on what things bring out the best in different kids. Am I right to go easy on some of them and be harder on the others? I don't think I am unfair with any of them. It also made me reflect on parenting and how I try to correct my children and the standards I set for them. I know I can be really hard on them sometimes, but it is out of love and out of an expectation that they are capable of behaving a certain way or achieving certain things. It is an ongoing process, and just as I expect them to improve, I have to adapt and try and improve myself. And sticking with the "theme" of my blog, we're working hard at it, but we're certainly not "there yet"!

Where does it end

The cost of communications these days seems to being going up and up and up. Conceivably, you could easily be paying for 3 internet services a month or more (home, phone, and iPad). Now, there are more and more "free" services starting to charge for content. Yes, I realize that each of these is a choice, but how much money are people really willing to shell out each month for all of these services? And does it make sense?

Cruising

We just returned from a wonderful cruise experience. Got kind of used to being able to indulge ourselves with "limitless" amounts of good food. The kids thought they must have been in heaven when they realized they could order 2 pizzas and a cheeseburger for dinner! And I could certainly get used to having prime rib AND lobster tail for dinner. Ah, but reality set in when we returned home and had spaghetti for dinner. It couldn't last forever! My wife's response... "Oh, I once was a queen!".

Vacation

I've been abusing my blog again. I'll blame it on using Facebook for all of life's little updates. Many of you know that Susan and I recently went on a trip to San Francisco. It was so wonderful! Not just for the fact that San Francisco is a beautiful place, but because I was able to just enjoy time with my wife, uninterrupted by kids or just the "stuff" of daily life. Since we don't often get to travel or have time without the children, it made us appreciate the experience that much more. We spent several days touring around the beautiful city of San Francisco (and enjoying the much cooler temperatures!). The highlights of the city had to be the beautiful architecture, neat diversity of cultures, Golden Gate Park, Fisherman's Wharf, and the food! After a few days in the city, we moved north of the bridge and aimed to spend a little more time doing outdoor activities. We drove up the seashore, up beautiful windy roads, for hours one afternoon. Every turn seemed to bring a new "ooooh, ahhh" moment. We had no destination in mind, just kept driving and enjoying the scenery. After finally deciding it was time to turn back, we found a cute little obscure restaurant and enjoyed a very nice meal. The following day, we enjoyed time in Sonoma visiting wineries and enjoying the very scenic countryside in that area. The next days were spent enjoying Muir Woods National Monument (seeing the majestic redwoods) and driving up/climbing up Mount Tamalpais. I could essentially finish each sentence with "the view was gorgeous", but I won't, you get the idea.

There is much more to tell, but this at least a snapshot. We were very blessed to have the opportunity to enjoy this vacation together.

Very refreshed, Bo

Summertime!

Summer is here! Yes, it will be and already is hot, but I love summertime. Baseball games, cooking out, kids at home, going swimming, etc. I may be yearning for 70 degree weather in another month, but for now I'm happy it's summer.