PAC 12 Championships

I’ve mentioned previously how one of our favorite things to do here in Oregon is attend gymnastics meets at Oregon State University.  The majority of the family are “Beaver Believers”, and Oregon State is a perennial gymnastics talent.  We try to go to as many home meets as we can.  A couple weeks ago, they got to host the PAC 12 Conference championship.  Mom, Dad, Nathan and I were lucky enough to get tickets and attend. 

The PAC 12 is a really tough gymnastics conference.  Nationwide, UCLA is ranked 6th, Utah 9th, OSU 10th, and Stanford 11th.  We had the opportunity to see some very talented gymnasts and amazing performances.

It seemed like every team brought their A-game. Stanford fell off pace after the first rotation, but UCLA, Utah, and OSU were all vying for the lead to the very end.  Utah’s gymnasts were incredible – I think they stuck every landing that night!  They were like machines, they were so consistent.  UCLA and Utah started out incredibly strong, but OSU stayed right on their heels and started to make up ground on the third rotation.  We saw some great performances from the Beavers, several of which garnered 10’s from some of the judges!  Every time a 10 went up, the crowd would roar their approval.

One of the big individual performance of the night came from one of the UCLA gymnasts, Vanessa Zamarippa, who scored a perfect 10 (meaning her four scores combined averaged to a 10.0) on the vault.  I have never seen a perfect 10 before, so it was pretty cool to see what a perfect routine looks like!

The best part of the meet was the fourth rotation.  By then, OSU had passed UCLA by a slim margin, but still trailed Utah.  Utah was on beam, UCLA on vault, and OSU on bars.  The Beavers had to not only overtake Utah, but they had to hold off UCLA on one of their strongest events.  The Beavers rose to the occasion and brought the crowd to their feet with an school record-setting bar rotation that included scores of 9.925, two 9.950’s, and a 9.975.  Combined with a few slight wobbles from Utah on the beam, the Beavers easily took over the lead and got a standing ovation from the home crowd.

After attending every home meet this season, it was so rewarding to watch this team bring home the PAC 12 championship!  We can’t wait to cheer them on at the NCAA Regional this weekend.  Go Beavs!

A Sad Goodbye

Today, a nation weeps.

Today, a nation said farewell to a hard working, stand up guy.

His name is Wes.

via providencejournal.com

Elsewhere, a nation of orange rejoices.  Peyton Manning claps his hands, and laughs, “Muah hah hah! I win again! No one can stop me now!”

Early reaction to the devastating news:

Megan: “NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!”

Lady at Work: “Who is Wes Welker?”

My Brother: “So, are you a Broncos fan now?”

My Husband: “I guess I am a Broncos fan now.  I may have to buy a new jersey.”

Megan: “Danny Amendola?!?!?! He could get hit with a Nerf ball and get hurt!”

All very valid points.  But best summed up by:

My Dad: “So who is Brady going to pass to???? Belichick?!?!?”

 

Goodbye, Wes.  We’ll miss you.  Make us proud.

Oh, and one last thing.

Suck it, Belichick.

Happy New Year Blog-aversary! (A Gift From My Laptop)

Well, the Mayans were wrong, the ball dropped, and 2013 is here!  It has been one whole year since I started this blog.  Some of you have liked the blog; some of you not so much.  Regardless, I like writing this blog, and I am going to keep at it.  I didn’t set out to write this blog to entertain people or tell them what they want to hear, but as creative outlet for myself and my random thoughts, and in that aspect I have done what I set out to do.  And whether or not other people choose to read along is their business.  (Although, if you are not a Tom Brady supporter I suggest you leave now, because I can guarantee that you will hate this blog).

I did not get to blog nearly as much as I intended to in December (and probably will not be blogging much for the next month or so), thanks to my laptop. The screen is having attitude problems and is acting out for attention by refusing to work the majority of the time (unless of course you angle the screen at a 45 degree viewing angle, because who doesn’t love that kind of a neck cramp?).  So, it will most likely be taking a little trip to military school (aka the American Express warranty department) in the near future.  However, the laptop decided to give us all an overdue Christmas gift today and actually work, and I decided to take that as a sign and give everyone a little update of what’s been going on around here.

First of all, Tom Brady news.  Well, for starters, the Patriots have rolled right into the playoffs with a first round bye.  I am very excited about this little development, although slightly sad that I have to wait an extra week to have a playoff party.  In even BIGGER NEWS . . . I am proud to announce that THIS is what a fantasy football league championship looks like:

That’s right folks, the TBFC took home the big prize!  It is with great pain and a heavy heart that I thank the Jets defense for securing this win for me.  There, I said it.  However, I think we all know who the real credit goes to (no, not J. Charles and his two lousy points).  Thank you, Tom Brady!  It’s been real.

In other fantasy news, despite having a losing record, The Wrath of Rex (managed by myself, my husband, and dad) managed to make the playoffs and get all the way to the championship game, at which point The Evil Killer of Fantasy Football Hopes and Dreams (you may know him as Eli Manning) killed all of Victor Cruz’s potential in one Sunday.  It didn’t help that we benched Seattle’s defense either.  So, the Wrath of Rex won the dreaded “runner-up” award.  On the plus side, we also won the “Most Name Changes In One Season” award (seriously, no joke – I have the Nerf football trophy to prove it!).  And we learned a valuable fantasy lesson, which I will share with all of you – Eli Manning is bad news.  He wasn’t even on our team and he crippled it nonetheless.  Draft at your own risk, people!

Also in December, I took my first steps into the field of fashion design when I created seven masterpieces using nothing but white t-shirts, a piece of printed paper, a fine-point sharpie, and fabric paints.  Behold. 

I even learned to use the automatic self-timer on my camera to document the glorious occasion. 

Sort of.

There’s still a few bugs to work out in the self-timing department.  Meanwhile, I’m still waiting for my call from Project Runway.

My family continued the tradition of weirdness.  Thus I present to you: Weird Family Photos, Volume 526,754:

Luckily, we managed to sneak a few good ones in as well (just ignore the photo-bomber in the picture below).

Switching gears, I have been reading a ton lately and have a few book recommendations for all the other readers out there.  I discovered a new series by an author named Veronica Roth.  I think I am a bit late in discovering this series, but if you have not heard of her, the titles of her first two books are Divergent and Insurgent.  Seriously . . . read them.  Once I started reading, I couldn’t stop.  The other book is The Fault In Our Stars by John Green.  I was hesitant to read it, because you can tell by the description that it is going to be sad, and boy do I hate sad books.  But I can honestly say, sad or not, I loved every page.  I am now desperately searching for some new books to read.  Suggestions are welcome!

Also, a movie recommendation – Silver Linings Playbook.  Hilarious and touching all at one time.  Plus the football references throughout the movie are a ton of fun.  It’s definitely a sarcastic sense of humor as opposed to obvious.  We had a hard time finding a theater around here that was showing it, but we saw it New Year’s Eve and it was worth the trip.

And that, my friends, is how I wrapped up 2012.  I rang in 2013 by taking down my Christmas decorations (sob) and eating popcorn.  I am not a huge fan of New Year’s Resolutions (although this blog came from one, so maybe they are more important than I think).  Partly it’s just because I find them cheesy, annoying, and lame.  And partly I just feel like I should really try to be my best self and improve myself every day of the year, not just on one.  Plus, I’m not very good at sticking to any resolutions I ever make.  Even this blog – yes, I still blog, but it gets more sporadic with every month.  Yet, every year I fall victim to the peer pressure and make some sort of resolution, and this year is no exception.

So, my resolution for 2013 is to get my laptop fixed and/or replaced.  I have to make this a resolution because the laptop has been having these issues for a couple months now, and until now I have failed to do anything about it.  And because frankly, attempting to blog from an iPhone is a lot harder than you might think.

On a side note, I also resolve not to break said iPhone in a fit of Bike Race rage.  (If you have no idea what I am talking about, download the free Bike Race app for your phone.  I guarantee that within ten minutes you will know exactly what I mean.)

I don’t know when I will get to blog again, so . . . have a happy January, and make sure you are cheering for the Patriots come playoff time!

Playoffs? Yes, Playoffs!

I realized it has been a rather long time – too long – since I’ve given an update on the TBFC.  I know you are all dying to know how the best team led by the Golden Boy on this side of the Rockies is doing.  No?  Well settle in, because I’m going to tell you anyway!

The biggest news is that the TBFC has rebounded from a mid-season slump to win four of their last five matchups, finish 7-5, and make the playoffs!  Ironically, although we did not even win our division and are the fourth seed in the playoffs, we DID take home the prize for most points scored in the season!  My husband will tell you that this does not trump his accomplishment of division champion and best record in the league.  He might be right.  But I will bask in the glory of my non-existent trophy nonetheless.

Here are some more fun facts about the team that will go down in history (whether as champions or infamous losers is yet to be determined):

*Of the 16 players drafted at the beginning of the season, only half survived to week 12.

*The TBFC is a bit Jekyll and Hyde.  When we lost, we lost BIG.  Our five loss margins: 22, 52, 26, 23, and 53 points.  Can you say ouch?

*On the plus side, when we won, we won big.  Our smallest margin of victory was 16 points.  5 of 7 victories were by a 20+ point margin.

*All accomplishments are in spite of what might be the worst running back carousel in history.  There is no other way to describe my running backs other than “horrifyingly bad” and “really not talented”.  If you want to curse a running back, ask me to pick them up.  I currently have 8 running backs on my team.  That is half the roster!  And I would trade them all in an instant for Arian Foster.  Can you sense my desperation?

*Conversely, there is no better way to spark a player’s talent than to place them on my bench!  Notable bench performances:  Jamaal Charles (36 points, Week 3 and 16 points, Week 10), Andre Brown (24 points, Week 3), Jordy Nelson (31 points, Week 7), and Pierre Garcon (17 points, Week 12).  I’m pretty sure my bench outscored my starters in Week 3.  Clearly, I never learn.

*I may live to regret the Reggie Wayne for Jordy Nelson trade.  Who knew Andrew Luck would be so good?  Oh, that’s right.  Only everyone in the world.  Except me.

*Despite all of this, the TBFC managed to lock a playoff spot one week early AND eliminate my boss from the playoffs, all in one weekend.  I have been told it’s not good to beat your boss.  I say it’s bragging rights.

The bright spots of my season have been my wide receivers (Julio Jones & Demaryius Thomas), Jimmy Graham and Super Brady himself.  Outside of byes and a couple weeks off due to injury, I haven’t had to think twice about them.  They are full time starters.  And though he may not be Reggie Wayne, Jordy Nelson is definitely better than any of my ten million running backs in the flex spot.

On a side note, I do find it odd that my underachieving team, led by my questionable management skills, managed to lock a playoff spot early.  Whereas the team in a second league (lovingly named Rex Ryan Rerun), co-managed by my dad, husband, and myself, is fighting for their life in the playoffs.  My husband will tell you that the fictitious Rex Ryan’s struggles are due my above mentioned questionable management skills.  I will tell you that our struggles are the fault of Eli Manning.  He isn’t even on our team, yet still he manages to kill it.  (I can’t speak to the real Rex Ryan’s struggles.  I do hear that karma is a bitch, though.)  If we can make it to the playoffs, you may hear more about good old Rex.  If not . . . well you may hear something as well.

So anyway.  Back to Tom.  This week, the Golden Boy and reject running backs of the TBFC face a new team in Round 1 of the playoffs.  We haven’t lost to this team before, most likely only because we never played in the regular season.  Sadly, there is no chance of meeting up with my hubby in the championship round as we are in the same bracket.  So let’s hope I win this week, so that I have the opportunity to knock him out in the semifinal round next week!

via the New England Patriots on Pinterest

Thanksgiving Weekend – The Road to Christmas

This year, we had a quiet Thanksgiving at my house with my parents and my brother Dakota.  I was really excited because this meant that the menu was entirely up to us, and I got the chance to make a large part of it.  We had all the usual staples (turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing) along with some old favorites (my grandma’s creamed corn) and some new recipes (a delicious apple pomegranate fruit salad discovered on Pinterest).  We even got out our wedding dishes to celebrate Thanksgiving in style.

 

We capped off the evening with some apple pie and the Patriots kicking the Jets’ you-know-what on national TV (Super Bowl, here we come).  Could it get any better than that?  I think not.

 

After recovering from our combined turkey/sugar comas, we did Black Friday in style.  As in, we placed some online orders and went to bed.  We let all the crazies do their shopping overnight, and then we headed out around 5 AM.  In just over an hour, Nathan and I managed to drive to, shop at, and check out from Home Depot, Kohl's, Sears, and Target.  We waited in line at exactly zero of these places, and we left with every “early bird” item that we came to get.  Seriously, no one was there.  I don’t know why anyone would wait in line for hours on Thursday night when they could get a few hours sleep and then go out in the morning.  We were so proud of our amazing shopping skills that we rewarded ourselves with breakfast out and a nap before heading out a few hours later to make our last couple stops.

We were home and done shopping by 1, so after another nap we decided to take advantage of Nathan’s night off work and decorate the house!  With the encouraging words of Clark W. Griswold and Buddy the Elf, we managed to decorate the entire interior of our house (minus the tree, which someone says we can’t get until next weekend).  Now the house is ready for Christmas!

 

Finally, we capped things off with some good old fashioned football on Saturday.  The more team spirited members of the family double layered so that they could wear Ohio State gear over their Oregon State gear.  I wore purple.

 

Everyone was excited about Ohio State’s big win . . . much less so about Oregon State’s big loss.  Oh well.  There is always next year (for both the winning AND losing teams, ironically).

Besides, I was rooting for the Ducks!

I Un-Heart the Seahawks (Part 2)

It is only fitting that today, on Halloween, I share with you the horror that was the Patriots’ loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

Okay, fine, I’m exaggerating.  It was really only the end of the day that was horrifying.  The rest of the day was great.  We started out with a hot breakfast at the hotel with a bunch of other Patriots fans, a little bit of NFL countdown, and a lot of layering and team gear.  Then we hopped the shuttle to the light rail and headed down to the stadium!

 

There were Patriots fans all over the train, and even more when we got to the stadium!  There isn’t a lot of tailgating due to lack of parking near the stadium, but there were fans everywhere, street vendors, and live entertainment from the very talented Seahawks band!

 

We explored outside the stadium a while, then decided to make our way inside the stadium to watch warm-ups.  Finally, I was in the same building as Tom Brady!!!

We decided that since we were making this a once in a lifetime experience, we should experience the whole thing, including stadium food.  I’m telling you, if our politicians are really so worried about inflation, they should visit a football stadium.  It makes the price of gas seem rather insignificant when you pay $4.50 for a bottle of soda.  (And really, at nearly $5 each, don’t you think they should let you keep the cap to your soda)?  Apparently, there are magic bubbles in the Sprite and Root Beer that they sell there.  So, after spending a small fortune on sodas and hot dogs, we made our way to our seats!

We had a great view, which was perfect, because it was almost time for warm ups.  And that means . . .

And because you should always give credit where credit is due . . . (and because their uniforms are awesome):

It was really fun watching warm-ups and seeing what goes on before a game.  Before we knew it, the stadium was full and they were singing the national anthems (yes, anthems).  Oddly enough, despite the fact that there were a gazillion Patriots fans in town and the fact that we were sitting in the visitor’s section, we were completely surrounded by Seahawks fans.

After the national anthem, the announcer introduced the Seahawks starting defense.  Each defensive starter was introduced individually with a shower of fireworks.  It was pretty cool, although I did feel a little sorry for their offense, which was not acknowledged at all.  I think that tells you everything you need to know about Seahawks fans and how they feel about their team!

And then it was time for the main event!  The first play of the game . . .

At that point, we realized why our shuttle driver had suggested we bring earplugs from the hotel.  I didn’t believe it could be as loud as he said, but WOW . . . it was even louder.  My ears were still ringing when we got home at midnight that night.  But it was worth it.  The whole game experience sucked me in.  It was so cool to be able to see everything happening during a play, as opposed to just what the TV cameras want you to see.  It was also really interesting to see what goes on during the commercial breaks.

We learned a lot about Seahawks fans during this game as well.  For starters, they are crazy.  And intense.  And so very loud.  They are not at all attached to Russell Wilson.  They hate him one second, and love him the next.  Seahawks fans all know that they got beyond lucky on the blown call in the Green Bay game.  They know they should have lost.  I even heard a few cries of, “Bring back the replacement refs!”.  And finally (and most importantly), they hate the Cowboys just as much as we do.  When the score of the Ravens-Cowboys game was announced, the entire stadium roared its approval of the Ravens’ win.  It just goes to show that even polar opposites can find common ground, at least as far as the Cowboys are concerned.

We saw a LOT of awesome things during the game.  The first nugget of awesomeness was Wes Welker scoring a touchdown right in front of us!  Witnessing a Brady-Welker TD in person made both our days.  Seattle also dropped a punt, which turned into a crazy play.  We had an official review controversy when Russell Wilson lost the ball and the refs ruled it a fumble (when it was clearly an incomplete pass).  They reviewed it and still ruled it a fumble, which did not really please our Seahawks seatmates.  Also, thanks to my dad lending me his binoculars, I was able to binocu-stalk Tom Brady all over the field!  THAT was fun.  The big screen also helped me out with that from time to time as well.

And for three glorious quarters, everything went swimmingly.  The players and everyone in the lower levels got soaked by the rain, but we stayed warm and dry where we were sitting.  Tom Brady had thrown a couple picks, but the Patriots still had a two touchdown lead, and life couldn’t get better.  So of course, the Patriots’ good for nothing, heart-attack inducing defense felt the need to re-emerge and make things interesting.  And things went downhill from there.  The Pats’ defense made Russell Wilson look like Aaron Rodgers, the Seahawks rallied, and scored a last minute touchdown to beat the Patriots by a point.  No offense to Russell Wilson, but the credit for the Seahawks win goes to the Patriots’ defense, no to him.

I will admit that it was beyond disappointing to have the Patriots collapse and lose the game like that.  But I have to say, it was a REALLY exciting game.  I didn’t want to watch a blowout or a snoozer, and this game went down to the very end.  There was nothing boring about it, and despite the loss it was still one of the most awesome days ever.  The only thing that could have possibly made the day better was a win.  But on the bright side, we got to see fireworks go off when the Seahawks won, AND we both got a free short stack of pancakes at IHOP that night before we went home, thanks to the Seahawks scoring at least 23 points.  So there’s that.  Free food makes up for a lot of things.

Besides, the Patriots’ loss didn’t seem nearly as painful once we got on the road to head home and I checked my fantasy score, only to discover that the TBFC was losing to my HUSBAND by thirty points . . . with a 34 point game from Jordy Nelson sitting on my bench.  Oy.

And THAT concludes the epic story . . . the trip of destiny, the game of a lifetime, and probably the closest to Tom Brady and the Patriots that I will ever get.  Which is probably good, because if I ever get anywhere near that defense, there would definitely be some yelling.  I am so glad we splurged and took this trip, because it was SO worth it.  Even if the Patriots had to lose for us to get it.  Next up . . . Foxborough?

I Heart Seattle! (Part 1)

It has been two weeks, and I feel I have finally recovered (enough) to share our Seattle trip with everyone.  Nathan and I took a trip to Seattle to watch the Seahawks-Patriots game on Oct 14.  Having never been to Seattle before (which is weird, considering how close we live to it), we decided to go up a couple days early so that we could spend our Saturday doing some sightseeing.

We stayed at the Hampton Inn by the airport, which I would HIGHLY recommend to anyone taking a trip to Seattle.  For $75 a night, we got a super nice hotel room, a delicious free hot breakfast every morning, and free 24-hour transportation to and from the airport, light rail, and multiple restaurants (even after we checked out on Sunday morning).  As someone who is always hunting for a bargain, I would say we definitely got it with the hotel!

The weather forecast for the weekend was rain, rain, and you guessed it – more rain!  So, Saturday morning, we layered on our Under Armor, raincoats, and hats, took the hotel shuttle to the light rail station, and took off for a little sightseeing in the rain.  It is amazing what you can do with a smartphone and a map of Seattle, and we had the whole day planned out.  We had two goals – see as much as we could see, and only eat at local Seattle restaurants.

Our first stop was Pioneer Square, to hit Smith Tower and the Waterfall Park.  I had read about this park on the Pioneer Square website and naively thought there was a real waterfall in the middle of downtown.  Yes, ha ha, joke on me.  It was a manmade waterfall in a courtyard, in a neighborhood where the only people seemed to be homeless, druggies, or just plain creepy people.  Funny how the website didn’t mention THAT part.  But the man-made waterfall was pretty.

Smith Tower wasn’t open yet (note to self – nothing opens until 10).  So, we made our way north into a less-creepy part of Pioneer Square and had some authentic Seattle’s Best Coffee (definitely better than Starbucks!) until the tower opened.  Never heard of Smith Tower?  Until the night before, neither had I.  We had been debating whether the $19/person fee to ride to the top of the Space Needle was worth it, when we saw that someone mentioned the Smith Tower online.  For only $7.50/person, you can ride the manually operated elevator (super awesome) to the 35th floor and access the observation deck.  You can see downtown, the waterfront, and even the Space Needle (on a clear day, you can also see Mt. Rainier).  You can also check out the Chinese Room on the 35th floor, which features a ceiling made of porcelain discs imported from China, and a 300 year old “wishing chair”.  The story is that if a single woman sits in the chair and genuinely wishes for love, she will be engaged within one year.  We got to the Smith Tower when it opened, and we had the entire place to ourselves for the half hour we were there.  We got a personal tour of the Chinese Room, and it was amazing to be the only ones on the observation deck!  I am guessing we couldn’t get that at the Space Needle.  The Smith Tower was one of the best stops of our day.

 

After Smith Tower, we continued heading North toward Pike Street Market.  We planned to ride the light rail, but once we started walking it just seemed easiest to keep on walking!  On the way, we made a nerd stop so that I could check out the Seattle Public Library.

The library building is so cool and unique.  It is TEN whole floors, and the fourth floor is this lovely surprise:

I kid you not; the entire fourth floor is red.  Except for the bathrooms.  (Which was disappointing, because I really wanted to see what an all red bathroom would look like.)  The fourth floor was also surprisingly deserted.

Next up after the library was a quick stop to see what a City Target looks like (they have separate escalators for your cart!) and then it was off to Pike Street Market!  I can’t believe how huge that place is.  You could spend all day there and probably not see everything.  We checked out the shops, the farmer’s market, the fish stand (yes, we got to see a fish getting thrown – there is nothing quite like seeing a giant dead fish fly through the air!), and the antique market.

Next, we continued walking our way north until we reached the Olympic Sculpture Park.  It is right on the water, a few blocks west of the Space Needle.  It features several unique sculptures, along with an excellent view of the Needle itself.

 

 

From the Sculpture Park, we made our way to the Space Needle.  We felt we had gotten our view and money’s worth at the Smith Tower, so we didn’t go up to the top, but we enjoyed the atmosphere.

 

At that point, we realized it was only 1:30 in the afternoon.  It’s amazing what you can get done when you get up early!  We had seen nearly everything that we wanted to see in just a few hours, despite the fact that we had walked well over two miles at that point.  We slowly made our way back toward Pike Street Market via Belltown.  We stopped at a little eatery called The Lucky Diner for a little snack to tide us over until dinner. They serve breakfast items all day, one of which is a delicious dish called Home Fries.  Yummmmm.  Belltown had tons of cool little shops and restaurants, and I wish we had stayed a whole week so that we could eat at every single one!  We made a slight detour so that I could see the Nordstrom flagship store (fancy and expensive, as always) and check out the downtown Nordstrom Rack (ten times busier than Portland, yikes!).  Then we headed down the Harbor Steps to check out the Pike Street waterfront.

At this point, we had walked over four miles and my legs were to the point that I could walk no farther.  So, we painfully climbed back up the ten million Harbor Steps to cap off our night with dinner at the Pike Street Market.  We picked the Pike Place Brewery (also called Pike Place Pub), because not only did it look like a pretty cool place, but it came highly recommended for great food (especially good burgers).  And frankly, a good burger is the way to our hearts!  The restaurant was awesome, and the food did not disappoint, prompting Nathan to claim that it was “the best burger I’ve ever had in my life”.  If you know him, you know this is a big deal!

By the time we finished dinner, it was 6 pm.  The market was closed, we had seen everything we wanted to see, and we were dead on our feet!  So we hopped the light rail back to our hotel to prepare for the big Sunday ahead of us.  One of the best parts about our day Saturday was how many other Patriots (and USC) fans we saw out and about – we definitely were not the only ones sightseeing.  It was really fun to say hi and wave to complete strangers who shared our team spirit (and even more fun when people mistook us for being from Boston!).  We had the most fantastic day exploring Seattle, and I am so glad we went a day early to take advantage of it.

Stay tuned for Part 2 and the big game!