back in metropolis

was back on LI this past weekend for the annual '89 friars golf weekend. used to be 2 rounds of golf per weekend, now down to one round of golf and one wild card day. golf this year was an adventure- played in 50 degree weather and a steady driving rain, lasted only 12 holes before we realized that the 80 bucks we paid to play wasn't worth getting pneumonia over.

second day turned out much better- hoops, stickball, mets/yankees game, poker, and plenty of old stories. hard to believe these stories are 20 years old now. yikes.

as if the weekend alone wasn't enough for a post, got a little gift as i was headed off the island. big flashing construction sign on the belt parkway with a message about nypd's attitude towards fireworks: "ZERO TOLARANCE". apparently they won't allow sparklers in NY but have no problems with public displays of spelling ignorance.

once upon a time...

some of the many things that pass through my head on a daily basis are memories of some pretty random items, events and encounters that may or may not have any relation to my current situation. i don't want this to become a pretentious trip down memory lane, but i thought it would be fun to share some of these things and maybe generate a little discussion.

today's reminiscence came up when noticing that for the first time in dover, gas is $4.00/gallon. i of course wasn't driving during the gas crisis of the 70's, but i do distinctly remember the odd days/even days gas thing, and the long lines at the gas stations. i realize that setup was due to shortage and not pricing, but could you just imagine what a supply problem would do to the current situation? chaos.

my favorite memory of the gas crisis though was a line from "good times", courtesy of jj "dyn-o-mite" walker. either florida or james were threatening to kick jj's deadbeat butt out of the apartment, and when jj realized he'd have to use the gas station bathroom if he lived on the street, he announced in horror that would mean he'd only be able to pee on odd numbered days. now THAT's comedy!

first quarter report

hard to believe, but this weekend will be the1/4 way point of the baseball season. mets are 2 games back of the first place marlins and not showing any signs of being a team that can truly contend. here are some of the ups and downs of the young season so far...

first, the ups:

• ryan church and brian schneider - trading milledge for both of them is looking like a huge coup- they're each hitting over .320 and church is leading the team in HR. (as a side note, i think every met fan is breathing a huge sigh of relief that we didn't trade milledge a few years ago for barry zito.)
• john maine - is he the ace of the staff? pitching better almost every time he's out there.
• david wright - late april slump is hurting the average, but he's been solid as far as run production (3rd in NL in RBI) and clutch in the field (8 errors, but gets to more balls down the line than most).
• luis castillo - showing signs of his former hitting prowess and playing above expectations at 2B.
  

and the downs:

• pedro- getting hurt 3 innings into the new year was not a good sign. due back in a few weeks, but how long will he last?
  
• jose reyes - flashes of brilliance in a sea of mediocrity- can't have a leadoff guy with an on-base percentage of .335 and expect to contend.
  
• carlos beltran - sorry, but i don't think we're getting our 18M/year worth. only 3 HR so far- less than guys like paul bako and rickie weeks. ("who?" exactly.)
• the bullpen - some guys have been ok (schoenweis) or even pretty good (smith, wagner), but the disappointing showings from heilman and sanchez, who were supposed to be our solid setup tandem, and the horrendous blowouts by jorge sosa (mercifully cut today, praise zeus) have made every game an adventure after the 6th inning.
  

the rest of the team seems average at best. santana has been fine but not scintillating, delgado seems to be giving us what we should expect (.250 and on pace for about 25 HR), and the bench has been fair but not fear-instilling to opponents.

maybe starting off like they have is their way of avoiding another late-season collapse; if they're mired in 3rd place, there's nothing to collapse from. next update at the all-star break, hopefully with a brighter outlook.

he may get stupid, i mean outrageous

hope you're checking in at least occasionally on the official finkipedia-endorsed blogs. we know you have many choices in blogs, and appreciate your business.

here's one more for you, just kicked off yesterday. i've got an idea that i want to share is a project of official finkipedia cardshark and rap impresario 2white. if the inaugural post is any indicator, his rants will not exactly be the quick 2-minute read that this blog tends to be, but should be interesting and engaging enough to draw you in. if you're a sports fan or just love a good debate, i think you'll find 2white's blog VERY enjoyable.

in the future, TV's will watch us instead

more FoF's in print- this time, official finkipedia futurist and brother-in-law (national division) googs is featured in a TV week interview about the future of television.

no mention anywhere in the interview about whether the success of the recent "knight rider" movie will finally get that rumored "momma's family" miniseries off the storyboards and into our living rooms.

best mother's day gift ever

never having been a mother, i don't have the credentials to determine what the best gift would be. but i'd think some kind of confirmation that you're doing a great job has got to rank way up there.

erin's gift today came from brendan, who was playing outside with owen this afternoon while we were getting some yard work done. he approached her, unsolicited, and proclaimed matter-of-factly, "mom, i'm having a great lifetime so far."

if that's not confirmation of good mothering, i don't know what is.

support our troops

in case anyone's up tomorrow AM, check out the CBS early morning show about 7:15AM- a good friend of mine from the air force currently overseas will be featured on the show. can't tell you much more because there's some kind of surprise involved with family, but it will be neat to say that there's only one degree of separation between you and someone on national TV!

finkipedia turns 100

well, believe it or not, this is the 100th post on finkipedia! (if you're adding up the monthly numbers right now and scratching your head, those tally the days only and don't take into account the occasional two-a-day postings.)

it's been a ton of fun so far. i think i'm achieving my goal that i set out in the first post- to have a place to update friends and family on our family happenings, and also to have a place to let others listen to the voices in my head.

hopefully you are enjoying reading along. for those lurkers who are reading but never drop by the comments page, feel free to chime in here and there and join the fun. for my regular commenters- thanks for keeping this interactive. it certainly makes it more enjoyable for me.

the next 100 posts will likely come more rapidly as i'm settling into a writing groove lately. i've also developed a few recurring features that i'll probably bring out more often- top 5 lists, my 3 songs, and of course, grammar lessons. also look for a new recurring feature, a trip in the way back machine to reminisce about things and events that you may not think of daily but will certainly remember. all this scattered amongst updates and quotes from the finkipedia clan.

thanks for reading, and happy 100 to me!

a day in the life

i would never say that my job is hard. people who lay brick for a living have a hard job. marine infantry have a hard job. i would describe my job as challenging, on some days very demanding, and often puts me into situations that are emotionally taxing. today seemed be all of the above.

one of my first patients arrived at the office in full septic shock- no blood pressure, faint pulse, very weak. got her stabilized and sent off to the hospital by ambulance. interrupted two patients later by a phone call from the pathologist at the hospital with the report on the autopsy from the patient who died last week a few hours after i admitted him. two more patients later, i'm in with a guy telling him he needs a biopsy and likely has cancer.

the afternoon wasn't much better- a patient with trouble breathing (spared a trip to the hospital for now), 4 stitches into the eyebrow of an 8 year old, and a call from the daughter of another patient reporting that her mom's blood pressure was very low (advised her to head to the ER).

down to the hospital after work to check on the lady from the morning (doing better) and admit the lady sent to the ER from the afternoon (doing fine also). then, got a call on my way home that another patient of mine from the nursing home arrived DOA at the emergency room.

hard day? you be the judge.

most publicity since the "washington slept here" stone was placed

picked up this link yesterday off of drudgereport.com. nice to see the ol' hometown finally getting some attention in the national media for things we do well. it's just too bad they failed to mention anything in the article about the mensa convention that was in town that week.

(apparently this fine gentleman is still taking applications for counsel- any takers?)

first communion

big day in finkdom yesterday- owen celebrated his first communion. he was excited, and admitted to being a little nervous just beforehand, but did great. he and about 15 other kids received their first communion as part of the regular sunday mass. near the end of the service, the priest acknowledged all the kids, congratulated them and led the congregation in a round of applause. owen, obviously moved by the spirit within him, felt inspired to do this great little dance of celebration. so funny.

had a small gathering of family back to the finkstead afterwards for mimosas, bloodies, and too much food. weather turned out perfect, which kept the kids outside for most of the afternoon. only the allure of the new mariokart game owen got for wii (thanks gramma and big buddy!) was enough to keep them inside for any stretch of time.

favorite quotes of the weekend-

• owen, at communion practice thursday night: "will i be able to go up for seconds?"
• ciaran, responding to rachel's "disappointment" that she didn't know mimosas were available when opting for a bloody mary: "you never take the first food item offered you at the finks until you've seen the whole menu."
• trooper kev, upon listening to my mom's description of the new time share my folks just bought into: "wait- lemme get this straight- you mean the indoor pool is indoors? that place must be amazing!"
  

FoF's in the news

here's a short piece from the washington post featuring official finkipedia economist and sister-in-law (national division) RK-K.

supports both the arguments of teachers that they work hard outside the classroom, and the arguments of others that teachers overall work less than other professions.

i'd like to see a financial analysis based on the hours worked of the true hourly rate of a teacher's salary vs. other professions. that would be interesting, and most likely very disappointing.

true heroes walking among us

tried to fit this in a comment on the last post, but the link was too long. for my fellow grammarians, i think you'll find this article enjoyable (and reassuring that there are some out there carrying out our mission). courtesy of big buddy, official finkipedia editor emeritus:

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/dannywestneat/2004367117_danny23.html

look! another grammar rant!

i've hit you with most of my grammar pet peeves, but there are plenty more things that i come across that are worthy of a rant. here's one from today, the greeting of a letter from another physician: "to all perspective members,"

maybe there are some members of his organization that have a good outlook on things and get the big picture, but i believe he is addressing those of us who are not yet members. of course "prospective" is the term he was looking for (pun intended).

it's not easy being green

after pledging on tuesday to be greener, i cut my lawn on thursday and bagged some of the clippings into 3 large trash bags. my green conscience kicked in that night (fueled no doubt by the renewable energy source that is catholic guilt), and i spent an hour searching online about how best to deal with grass clippings.

the consensus across multiple websites was, of course, to leave them on the lawn. most sites agreed that long clippings (like the ones that were in my bags) didn't sit too well on lawns, but this could be avoided by just cutting more frequently. no one seemed to have very good advice for those of us who had already let the lawn get too tall. so i looked for other alternatives to leaving them on the lawn.

apparently grass clippings make great mulch, if you want green mulch that turns a yellow brown when dry and smells like a sewer when wet. they can also be composted by digging a "shallow hole" and covering them with dirt. i have an acre of grass to cut- a shallow hole to fit my clippings would have to be about 40 feet in diameter. one site did recommend using the clippings as a blanket to kill weeds along fence lines, which seemed like the most reasonable resting place for my clippings at this point.

so, after another cutting today and a collection of clippings from most of the lawn, i now have a 60 ft long, 18 inch high "blanket" of grass clippings all along the back of our property. after the rain coming our way tonight, it should take care of the weeds quickly while providing the lovely aroma of spring in the country.

yay! new e-friends!

the online finkiverse is expanding again. you'll notice a new official finkipedia-endorsed blog, lovemomworklife. authored by one half of one of my favorite duos in the world, n. is a great friend and the wife of my college roommate, bucket. (maybe she'll let him guest-post as to the origin of that nickname).

definitely plenty of blog material for her- a beautiful family, a career in advertising, and an ongoing renovation of her 100+ year old hudson river valley home. and she uses capital letters, so if you're into that kind of stuff, check it out.

earth day

i think i've always been a little "greener" than the average person- years as a boy scout provided me with a healthy respect for the outdoors. but there are two particular experiences i've had that have pushed me more down the tree-hugging path.

the first of which was an ecology class i took in college, a requirement for all bio majors. the prof i had was an amazing guy- absolutely loved his job and was so passionate about ecology and the environment. we went on field trips weekly, from the woods of connecticut where we counted trees, to his own backyard where we saw his compost pile. i've always thought that his passion for the earth tied in so well the jesuit beliefs of faith, peace and justice.

the second experience was a mission trip to jamaica, also in college, during which i lived for a week and a half in the slums of kingston. our section of the city had indoor plumbing, but the water was only a slow trickle and didn't run at all after late morning. the abject poverty helped give me a greater appreciation for the resources we all have and take for granted.

i'm still far from being as green as i'd like to be - i own a gas guzzling monster SUV, have dual-zone AC, and have incandescent bulbs in every fixture of my home. but i'm trying- i recycle about everything i can, i use as little water and energy at home as possible, and am certainly considering composting my trash and purchasing a hybrid vehicle.

whatever your views on global warming, i don't think you can argue that renewable energy sources and more common sense resource management are good ideas. maybe someday in the not-too-distant future, the opinions of those in power will be the same, and we'll have some progress towards environmental justice.

seg-way cool

one of the things i got to check out while at WDW was a segway exhibit at epcot. they show you a 10+ minute video on the history of the segway, then let you take one for a test roll. just a short down-and-back on a carpeted path, only about 60 feet round trip, but enough of a test to get an idea of how cool these things are.

i must admit, i've been skeptical about them from the get-go, and find it hilarious to see mall security and city police zipping around on these things. but they're incredibly cool, easy to use, and after riding one i can see how they would be helpful for many situations.

disney offers two segway tours- one of the countries around epcot (done before park opening) and one cross-country segway tour at their campground. something i'll definitely look into next trip.

back to the grind

back after a very enjoyable, albeit initially soggy trip to the sunshine state.

spent the week with my folks and my sister and her family doing the disney thing. tough getting 11 people on the same schedule, but we managed pretty well i think. had some good meals, a few great meals, and saw some cool things (make sure you catch "soarin'" at epcot if you're headed to disney anytime).

drove straight thru from orlando to middletown on the way back- about 16 1/2 hours, most of it overnight. comment of the week came from owen, who woke up when stopping for breakfast at 7AM (after sleeping in the car for 9 hours straight) and asked , "did we stop at a hotel last night?"

runners-up for the comments of the week:
owen, upon seeing all our bags packed and sitting on the bed of the hotel room friday morning, "are we leaving today?"
brendan, waking up next to me after the first night of the trip, "dad, i think your toothpaste wore off during the night"

por favor, mantengas alejado de las puertas

you're on your own for the next week and a half- headed out tomorrow to the house of mouse for grandpa eddie's retirement celebration. we're driving down, which means 15 hours of radio disney and south of the border billboards. stop tomorrow night in GA, then the rest of the way friday AM.

the boys got new nintendo DS's for easter, which should keep them occupied nicely. brendan surrendered his old leapster to molly, which she's taken to and will hopefully find interesting enough to engage her for at least a few hundred miles.

plenty of blog fodder to come from this trip, to be sure!