Sturgis Bike Week ER Visits Up Due to Old Age

Sturgis Rally Daily >: "RAPID CITY -- The number of Sturgis Motorcycle Rally-related emergency room visits at hospitals around the Black Hills is almost twice what it was last year at this time.
The numbers don't necessarily reflect an increase in motorcycle accidents. Hospital officials say the increase might be due to the aging of the biker population.
Deb Colson with Rapid City-based Regional Health says hospital officials are seeing various kinds of injuries related to older people, and more heart attacks."

It's the graying of America's outlaws?! Does this mean those dreaded bikers are going to come beat you up with a cane? I doubt it! Those guys may be getting older, but have you seen them? Most of them could still kick some serious ass. In a fight between their generation and the new generation of bikers, with their foriegn made speed rockets, I'll take the Harley riders any day. Still, kind of sad to see one more sign of an institution passing on into the night.

Some people can be such....

So we just returned from a week of Boy Scout summer camp this week. And yet again, I saw over and over again why some people should not be allowed to be an example to our youth, unless they come with a sign that says "Even a bad example is an example". For instance:

1) There is a canoe outing where a a couple of hundred people in a dozen or more large canoes have to get all the gear, people and boats out of the water in a short amount of time. While doing this, the camp staff (all between the ages of 14 and 21) are trying to turn this into and organized effort run by the scouts. That is when you have some yahoo who thinks he has a better way of doing it and he let's everyone know. He does things his way, and "no kid is going to tell him what to do". Turns the organization into chaos.

2) Same scenario. We're trying to get everyone on the beach safe and (mostly) dry. A different idiot says "I only used one boat, I've carried three. I did my part." He then proceeds to stand back and watch as the rest of us pitch in and make sure that EVERYONE makes it out OK. Good lesson for the kids: Just do enough, don't help until all the work is done.

3) As I said, the staff are all young people between 14 and about 24 years old. The last day in camp can be a little chaotic, getting everyone's paperwork and gear in order. There are going to be delays and lines, people. But apparently for some people, who believe the world and those in it exist only to serve them, the Scout Law goes out the window. Let's see...Trustworthy (honest, I saw him turn in the homework. Oh, he said he didn't? Oops)...Loyal (Boy Scouts should spend a little money on "insert any number of self serving items here")...Helpful (I carried my bag down, that little 11 year old can handle his 50 pounds of gear)...Friendly (don't even get me started here. How the staff kept a smile the whole morning I don't know)...Courteous (direct quote "This is a ridiculous Clusterf*#%")...Kind (see the last two posts)...Obedient (one scoutmaster actually told his scouts "There. We cheated the system so we can get off the island early)...Cheerful (I don't think I need to elaborate on this, see Kind)...Thrifty (OK, unless you count all of the time wasted complaining about what they didn't like)...Brave (I'll get to that one in a moment)...Clean (that means language as well as body, people. Yet that guy in line behind me smelled like he hadn't bathed all week) and Reverent (do unto others?...).

4) Which gets me to the kicker. When we get back to port there is one rule that was specifically spelled out. We were told not to pass any gear back over the fence to people outside, as the top of the fence is very sharp. One of my female leaders was tasked with reminding people of this. Then some big idiot decides to hand his bag over to someone waiting for him. She reminds him of the rule we all learned before getting off the boat, and he gets into her face and tells her that the laptop in the bag is his world and that maybe she should "try the Girl Scouts next time". Even if you are going to explicitly break the rules, teaching your scouts in the process that there is no rule except do what you want to do, there is absolutely no call to be an ass about it. When I went to the leaders of the troop to ask for an apology, they knew who I was talking about before I mentioned any description, and were all apologetic with that "there he goes again" look on their faces. I know there is zero chance he will read this, and even less that someone as self absorbed would see his actions in this post, but if by the smallest of chances he is reading this I would like to ask two questions: a) Are you really proud of the fact that you brought one of the nicest people and a fellow scout leader to tears? and b) How does it feel to know that even though you have physical size, you proved you have absolutely no emotional, mental or maturity stature? Real brave of you to try to belittle a fellow leader who was just doing the job she was given.

Oh, and is that the example you want your son to see? I didn't think so.

New Zealand moves closer to Australia after earthquake | Travel News | News.com.au

New Zealand moves closer to Australia after earthquake Travel News News.com.au:
THERE won't be any cheaper air fares but southern New Zealand is now closer to Australia after last week's huge earthquake.

The quake was so powerful it pushed the South Island 30cm closer to Australia.

The island's east coast moved only 1cm westwards, the Herald Sun reports.

'New Zealand just got a little bit bigger,' earthquake scientist Ken Gledhill said.

He said the quake did it 'in a few seconds rather than waiting hundreds of years'.

I'm sorry, but this is just cool. And awesome. The fact that an earthquake could have the power to stretch an island continent by one whole foot! Not only did it move New Zealand closer to Australia, but stretched it by 29 centemeters. Absolutely amazing the power of nature.

http://tinyurl.com/m4xl64

This link is for the USGS information on this particular earthquake.

Astronauts deal with flooded toilet in orbit- myMotherLode.com

Astronauts deal with flooded toilet in orbit- myMotherLode.com: "The bathroom lines at the already crowded space shuttle and space station complex got a lot longer Sunday because of a flooded toilet.
One of two commodes aboard the international space station broke down, right in the middle of complicated robotic work being conducted by the two crews. The pump separator apparently flooded.
Mission Control advised the astronauts to hang an'out of service' sign on the toilet until it could be fixed. In the meantime, the six space station residents had to get in line to use their one good toilet. And Endeavour's seven astronauts were restricted to the shuttle bathroom."

This can't be good. I hate it when the toilet overflows in the house. I can't imagine what it would be like in a weightless environment (where things can "flow" in any direction) where the air is recirculated! One has to be brave to be an astronaut!

Walter Cronkite

Of all of the recent spate of celebrity deaths, and there seems to have been quite a few lately, I think the loss of Walter Cronkite actually hits me the hardest. To understand why, you would have to know I'm a news junkie. I have to know what is going on in the world. And I can attribute this to growing up in a "CBS" household. Every night it was Ray Wilson on the local news, followed by Walter Cronkite on the national news. I barely remember watching Apollo 11 on TV, but part of that memory is Walter Cronkite. Watching replays of the Apollo 11 coverage where he is speechless and amazed, I remember why I got interested in space in the first place. Growing up I was the geek who would take presidential voting polls on the elementary school playground (and I too am amazed that I never got my butt kicked), because of watching Walter Cronkite cover the party conventions back when they actually meant something. His last broadcast was an event that we would not miss. I even enjoyed his Saturday morning show, You Are There.

Basically, Walter Cronkite was a big part of my childhood, as I am sure he was for others of my generation. His voice, his demeanor and his honest delivery of the day's events forged the way for the anchormen and women who followed. While there are and will be great news people, there will never be another Walter Cronkite.

Tuxedo Night at the Ballpark!

You've got to love minor league baseball. Not only can you have a uniform like this, even if only for a night, but you can play for a team called the "Iron Pigs"! Bless the man (you know it was a 'guy') that invented the tuxedo shirt! To go to the article:

http://tinyurl.com/lh63hp

Here's a list of my favorite minor league team names:

Geekiest (tie): Albuquerque Isotopes (Dodgers AAA team), Las Vegas 51's (complete with the alien logo-Blue Jays AAA team)

Best Food Name: Montgomery Biscuits (Rays AA Team)

Best WTF Name (tie): Tulsa Drillers (Rockies AA Team), Wilmington Blue Rocks (Royals High A Team)

Best Animal Name designed to make us look as wimpy as possible: Brevard County Manatees (Brewers High A Team)

Best Name That Should Be On a Kid's Soccer Team: Kannapolis Intimidators (White Sox High A Team)

Best team logo: Of course, it would be the Lake Elsinore Storm. You just can't beat those eyes staring back at you from the hat.

What the hell are people thinking, again

The sheer stupidity of some members of humanity still doesn't cease to amaze me. Take tonight for example. I am out running (I know, some of you are now adding me into that stupidity label) when I pass a house where the owner is mowing his lawn with a gas powered push mower, with his 4 year old kid sitting on top. I'll stop here so you can absorb that. Go ahead, re-read it. He had his kid sitting on top of the machine with the rapidly spinning blade capable of amputation or death! We need a license to drive a car, own a gun, fly a plane or even ride a bike (remember having to go to the fire station to get a bike license? No? Boy I am getting old, aren't I?) but we don't need squat, other than active glands, to have kids! It's harder to get a dog from the pound than it is to have children, so is it any wonder we are growing into such a stupid race? Persons (singular) are smart. People (as a whole) are dumb!

Speaking of dumb:

Texting Teen Unaware As She Falls into Sewer
Texting Teen Unaware As She Falls into Sewer ... the hard way when she fell into an uncovered sewer manhole while trying to send a message. Now, the family of Alexa Longueira, 15, intends to sue.http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31853449/

Now who do they intend to sue? The city for putting that big hole in the middle of the sidewalk? The cellphone company for making the screen on the phone too small? The public school system for not properly teaching their daughter to walk and chew gum at the same time? Maybe they should stop wasting public time on this frivolous stuff, and teach their daughter to keep her eyes open!

Of course, that's just my humble opinion.

Endeavour launch postponed again

Endeavour launch postponed again
Of course, the question would be: Did anyone (other than a Space or Space Shuttle geek like myself) even realize that the Space Shuttle was launching? It's become so commonplace that most people don't notice at all. Maybe that will change with the upcoming mission to the moon, if we can ever get that started. The NASA Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/LRO/main/index.html) is a good start, but let's see where it goes when the budget cutters and nay-sayers get hold of it.

Former Padres Pick Matt Bush Pleads Guilty - San Diego News Story - KGTV San Diego

Former Padres Pick Matt Bush Pleads Guilty - San Diego News Story - KGTV San Diego: "Former San Diego Padres draft pick Matt Bush pleaded guilty Friday to assaulting students at a lacrosse practice at Granite Hills High and also admitted reckless driving and vandalism charges in another incident."

And in other Padre news, it's a proud day for the team. Their one time first round pick (sure, we didn't really need Stephen Drew, did we?) pleaded guilty to being a loser who wasted a talent that most of us would give our eye teeth (and many other things as well) to have. Most of us grow up dreaming of the day we can pitch the last out, hit the walk off home run, make the game saving play, you get the idea. That's why it ticks me off to see a guy like this who was so close to having the dream, yet too stupid to realize it and do what it takes to make it. Waste of talent.

As a side note, I'm using IE8 in Vista on my new notebook computer, and I've found this cool little add-on that allows me to automatically add things to my blog. I get the feeling that this means I am going to be adding more to "Snapshots" than to "POV" for the moment. As a matter of fact, I am thinking of moving POV to one of the photo specific blog sites, so I can get better views. This blog is going to stay here in it's relative anonymity, however.

Padres on wrong end of history | padres.com: News

Padres on wrong end of history padres.com: News: "Jonathan Sanchez, bounced from the starting rotation because of inconsistency and command issues, returned with a vengeance on Friday, tossing a no-hitter as the Giants defeated the Padres, 8-0, at AT&T Park.
It marks the first time the Padres have been no-hit since Sept. 3, 2001, when St. Louis pitcher Bud Smith accomplished the feat."

Note that it says the first time since 2001. Some teams haven't been "no hit" in decades, but for us it's amazing that it has happened only twice this millennium. And we are still one of only a couple of teams to have neither the cycle or a no-hitter! Makes us look good, doesn't it? Damn it's tough being a Padre fan sometimes!

What were they thinking?

Ok, so I've started to think about listing "what were they thinking" posts. For example, the other day I was driving home and I saw this kid riding down the street on his bike wearing a football jersey. No big deal, except it was a Michael Vick jersey. What were his parents thinking? Let's let Johnny go riding around celebrating a convicted felon! What's next, the O.J. tee-shirt?! Yes, I know that's overreacting, but still...couldn't they have found any other jersey for him?

Baseball geek, part 2

I'm headed next weekend on my annual baseball geek pilgrimage. We go to Peoria, AZ every year to watch the Padres in Spring Training. That hopeful time when it's still possible that any team could go to or even win the World Series. I mean who saw the Tampa Bay Rays going to the World Series? Ninety percent of you are lying! You did not think they would be there! If you did, you would've bet on them in Las Vegas and made serious coin!!!

This year we get to see the Dodgers and Indians for the first time, as well. I'll try to write something, and I guarantee there will be photos for Jim's Point of View.

OK, so I'm a baseball geek.

As the title says, I'm a baseball geek. The new MLB Network started on New Year's Day, and I can't get enough. Even though I've seen the same show about perfect games four times now, and sat through the Don Larsen perfect game twice late at night, I keep going back. All baseball all the time! It's a baller's dream come true. I can't wait until the season starts, when they have cameras in every stadium! If my wife is reading this she is shaking her head right now and mentally calling me what I am...a baseball geek. I'm not apologizing for it. In fact I revel in it, relish it, and am proud that I've passed it on in varying degrees to both of my sons. I'm not saying she's not a baseball fan, and knowledgeble as well, just she's a fan not a FAN(atic) who will search out the box scores first thing in the morning, and go to sleep watching the replays on TV at night. Or wears a baseball logo tie or watch (thanks for the gifts, hon). In fact, among my favorite movies, what else: Major League, Field of Dreams and The Natural. And Caddyshack, but come on, what guy doesn't love Caddyshack ("It's in the hole!").