Go Vote!

Tomorrow is election Day in the United States of America. Where I live, there is a hotly contested race to see who will represent my district in the US Congress. The incumbent is a Republican who is losing in the latest polls after doing practically nothing for 12 years. The Democratic candidate has apparently taken the lead by holding the incumbent responsible for being in lock step with Donald Trump and MAGA. There is also a hotly contest race for the Missouri house seat where the incumbent is running to hang on to a seat he's had for six years in the state legislature.

If you live in the US too, make sure you vote if you haven't already done so. There is a lot at stake in choosing the course the US will follow in the next several years. You can read more about the issues facing the American public at reliable news sources.

Congratulations Milwaukee Brewers!

Image courtesy of Major League Baseball

The Milwaukee Brewers are the new champions of Major League Baseball. They defeated the Tampa Bay Rays four games to one in Game 5 played at Tropicana Field in Saint Petersburg, Florida. The score of game five was Milwaukee 4 - Tampa Bay 1.

This is the first time the Milwaukee Brewer have won the fall classic. Their only other World Series appearance against the St. Louis Cardinals in 1982 resulted in a 4 games to 3 loss.

The Brewers, managed by Pat Murphy, dominated the Rays, led by Kevin Cash, in the five game series just as they had their opponents in the earlier playoff series and the major leagues all season long. The Brewers were the winningest team in MLB with a record of 103 - 59. They won their divisional playoff series against the San Diego Padres 3 games to one, then swept the Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship series 4-0 before winning four out of five from the Rays.

The World Series MVP is William Contreras who hit .381 in the World Series.

He's Baaack

I'm back from eight days in Europe and it was a blast. I went to check Oktoberfest off of my bucket list, but was able to visit the Bavarian Alps and the Dachau concentration camp memorial while I was there.

After spending three days in Germany I boarded a high speed train in Munich and headed west to France. It took two trains and almost eight hours to reach my destination of Bayeux. From Bayeux it was only a short drive to the beaches of Normandie and the American Cemetery overlooking the English Channel. That day I was able to accomplish another bucket list item.

From Bayeux I travelled to Paris and spent four nights and three days. I saw the sites and enjoyed several wonderful meals. I also met some really nice French people in both locations.

Yesterday morning I boarded a flight from Paris' Charles DeGaulle Airport, changed planes in Charlotte and arrived home a total of 13 hours later. I will post some of my vacation images and stories in the coming days.

Happy Labor Day!

I will make this short and sweet. This is Labor Day in the United States of America. Thanks to the hard work of my fellow American citizens this has been a wonderful country in which to live. Thanks to the Democratic party, which is closely aligned with American labor, we have the 40 hour work week, Social Security and overtime pay laws. But, unlike our sisters and brothers in many other nations, especially in Europe, we still don't have mandatory vacation pay. I'm retired now but all of these laws helped me while I was working, especially when I had three jobs at the same time.

So, I wish all of you, now working in the US, a Happy Labor Day 2026!

Congratulations to the Football Hall of Fame Class of 2026

 

Congratulations to the newest class of the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. Five new members were inducted on Saturday, August 8th, including a running back who had to wait way too long to be selected.

Adam Vinatieri, Drew Brees, Larry Fitzgerald, Luke Kuechly and Roger Craig joined the greats of the game. I was fortunate to see Brees play in person at the then Trans World Dome in St. Louis, before Stan Kroenke bought out the rest of the Rams stock, from the estate of Georgia Frontierre. Kroenke then ran the Rams into the ground to get the team out of the Midwest and into a much larger market on the West Coast.

Brees played against the Rams and I saw him play in-person twice. I remember him as a guy who would figure out a way to beat you if given the time. He helped win a Super Bowl for the city of New Orleans a couple of years after Hurricane Katrina damaged much of the city. Brees and the Saints beat the Colts in the 2010 Super played on February 7.

Craig revolutionized the RB position by becoming the first to gain over 1000 yards rushing and 1000 yards receiving. He was one tough son of a gun. Unfortunately, the only times I got to see him play were on television. I watched a lot of 49er games after the Rams left St. Louis. I was a fan of the 49ers from the late 80s into the mid 90s.

Vinatieri was the guy who kicked a game-winning field goal in Super Bowl XXXVI in February 2002. The Rams had battled back to tie the game at 17 each with 90 seconds left in regulation. As a Rams fan, I thought it would go to OT, but the Pats drove down to the Rams 20-yard line with no timeouts. Vinatieri came on the field and made a 48-yard FG to win it for New England as time expired. He becomes one of just five kickers in the Hall of Fame.

Fitzgerald was a favorite of mine with Arizona. He played 17 years, all with the Cardinals. The Cardinals have been charter members of the NFL since 1922. However, the franchise has played in just one Super Bowl. Fitzgerald is a key reason Arizona made it to Super Bowl XLII in February 2009. Fitzgerald scored twice in the game. (He scored on a 64-yard pass/run with 2:47 left in the game to put the Cardinals up 23-20). But, Fitzgerald had an even better post-season. In four playoff games, he had 30 catches for 546 yards and seven touchdowns. His quarterback that year was Kurt Warner, who'd won Super Bowl 32 with the St. Louis Rams. And, the Cardinals came close to winning the game until the Pittsburgh Steelers scored with 7 seconds left in the game. I've watched every game, (not always start to finish), since Super Bowl 1 in 1967. This is the best Super Bowl ever played!

Kuechly was a tackling machine. He played only eight seasons in the NFL. All of them with the Carolina Panthers. He played his first season in 2012 and retired after the 2019 season. Kuechly cited concussions for his retirement after that season. My guess is, had Kuechly played in New York or Los Angeles or Chicago he would have been better known and a superstar. But, opposing offenses knew him and how good he was. Three times he helped his team to the post-season playoffs. In early 2016, the Panthers, with Kuechly's defensive play, made it to Super Bowl 50.

Congratulations to all five of these men in the Canton class of 2026!