Craig's Blog of Destiny

Dateline – WASHINGTON (the state) – Last week Commissioner Craig Cottle announced the establishment of the new Greyhavens Fantasy Football League. The fledging league will begin operations for the 2009 season and hopes to provide fun and excitement for members of the league and their families.  “The last several years have been pretty tough for us 49er fans, and we know we’re not alone.  We hope this new league will give us something additional to get excited about,” Commissioner Cottle said.  Left unsaid was that it looks like it may be another tough year for 49er fans.

The GFFL is currently comprised of the three founding teams: Dunedain, The Hand of David, and Snowmen.  There remains room for additional teams, and in fact the league needs more teams in order to provide the hoped for fun and excitement.  Cottle is on record as saying “we would like to open the season with at least six teams, would feel comfortable with eight, and could handle as many as ten.”

There has been an emphasis in the league on simplicity.  Keeping it simple should attract the appropriate demographic to the new league.  “We’re not looking for the hardcore fantasy player,” Cottle said, “rather those that have considered playing in a fantasy league, but hadn’t gotten around to it yet.  This, our inaugural year, will focus primarily on offense, have simplified scoring, and we anticipate minimal trading activity.”  Of primary importance at the outset is the simplified draft format:  owners need only rank the available players in order of preference and the draft will all be handled automatically on September 6^th.

Team owners should register their teams for the GFFL as early as possible, but will have the next two weeks to rank their players for the draft.  To register, simply visit the league’s website at join craigthegrey@yahoo.com’s custom league . Any questions can be directed to Commissioner Cottle at craigthegrey@yahoo.com or via any of his web presences (Live, From Wherever I Am, All Cottles Great and Small, Facebook, and even Twitter).

Over on the Cottle blog, there’s been a little discussion of some “signs of the apocalypse” (Amoung Canadians, golf is now more popular than hockey!?!).  This has led me to some uncomfortable thoughts regarding my favorite church sign. For at least the last eight weeks, this has been the sign:

I’ve felt like I’ve lost an old friend.

So, to help stave off the loneliness (and perhaps put off the apocalypse) here’s one from another church just up the street from my apparently absent Adventists:

When partaking in sin, I’ll be sure to avoid the bitter aftertaste by taking more than just one bite.

I’m not one to want to see movies on the day they first come out.  Even back when I was arranging private screenings of the Lord of the Rings it was a week or so after the release date.  But I’m very intrigued by a movie that’s opening today, The Time Travelers Wife.

Ok, it’s a love story.  A strong love story.  It will probably fall into that “chick flick” category.  Nevertheless, I’m drawn to it.  I’m drawn to it because it was such a good book.  Audrey Niffenegger blew me away with the book.  The story wasn’t necessarily great (it’s a love conquers all story), but it was told in a wonderful, brilliant way.  It’s the story of two people in love, and the story of a love that endures the catastrophe of those two people living completely different time lines.  Written with alternating first person perspectives, I found the book engaging throughout.  It was an instant addition to my list of best reads.

Rachel McAdams, who stars in the movie, was on Jon Stewart last night and during the segment they pretty much give the whole story away, but the concept is so strong that as Jon concludes, “I really have to see this movie” anyway.  It is that concept, and Ms Niffenegger gift of portraying the concept that will ultimately lead me to the movie.

Ultimately, I’m sure I’ll see this movie, though I’m not going tonight, not sure that I will actually go out to the theater to see it anytime soon, unless I hear great things about it.  Feel free to let me know what you think if you have or will see it.

For me, I think I’ll reread the book this week.

“It should be hard.  I like that it’s hard.  [Providing for, and raising a family], that’s a man’s job.  Man’s accomplishment.  But it should be a little easier.  Just a little easier.  Because in that difference is…… everything.”

Oh, oh…  looks like they heard I was considering visiting one week…

Happy Birthday to the love of my life!

I’m not a huge facebook fan, but I do have a page and I like seeing what people elect to put up there.  [I’m with David when it comes to some of the quizes and apps that are turning up, I think Congress should step in.]  There is one quiz that has caught my attention – “The How Well Do You Know Me?” quiz.  Not because I’m willing to test any of you on how well you know me, but because many of the questions generated random thoughts I could express.  So, here’s my version of the “How Well Do You Know Me” quiz:

What is my favorite pizza topping?
In our house, there’s the meat lovers and the cheese lovers.  Sometimes the cheese lovers like pineapple on their pizza…
Favorite childhood game is ________.
We have some multi-generational Dungeons and Dragons going on around here, with Sam taking D&D to whole new levels.  I never played with the same commitment as Sam does.  (See Sam’s post – or at least part of Sam’s post)
What body part would I like to get a tattoo on?
David now has two tattoos.  I liked the first one, because of its meaning: being true to ones self.
What color suits me best?
Recently Kristin did some painting at our place, she did several walls a nice green and it really looks great – adds a lot of warmth to our home.
I secretly would like to be a ________ for a day?
Rock star… I’d love to play some challenging bass on a big stage, in front of a big crowd…
My favorite flavor of ice cream is ________.
We really enjoy home made ice cream, we make it pretty often around here.  Kristin tweaked one of my recipes to be very diet friendly (no sugar, just lots of fruit and cream) which is pretty good.  I’ve been thinking about the root beer ice cream I used to make, perhaps I’ll need to make some.  We’ve had some pretty good root beer floats lately.
What country would I like to live in?
Lately Kristin and I have been talking about living full time on a cruise ship.  There’s one that you can buy a residence on, and it just cruises around the world, taking two years to do the whole trip.  I need to make a whole bunch of money…
What is my middle name?
I have always been proud that my father gave me his name as a middle name…but I don’t use it.  Even he goes by the shortened version.  He has no middle name, just the initial ‘A’.
What time am I usually in bed by?
About an hour after I should be… however, the family won’t hesitate to mention that I usually get some sleep time in on the couch before I head to bed….
How many times have I traveled out of the country?
Last Christmas we made a last minute decision to go to Canada for a few days.  It was a good trip, made me think perhaps we should go more often.
If I was running out of my burning house, what item would I grab?
The things I would be most concerned about aren’t “grab-able,” like Kristin, Sam and J’Neil.  Maybe my laptop, there are certainly irreplaceable things on my laptop…
What would be the perfect present for me?
Kristin has always been so good at giving me presents, always thoughtful.  Her gifts are always full of value much greater than whatever she paid for them.  All the way back to my crystal balls, the painting of the wizard she gave me one year, to my first bass.  In my drawer I still have the fish-go-round game she gave me many years ago.
What song would I choose to sing at a karaoke bar?
It’s hard to sing…harder than I would have thought.  It’s easy if you’re singing along with the stereo or the radio, not so much when it’s just you and the guitar.  I’m waiting for Kristin to tell me which ones she thinks I do ok… I believe that’s a harder thing for her to decide than I might like…
What would I dress as for Halloween?
Apparently, I don’t have a great deal of imagination; at Halloween I’ve worn the same wizard outfit for the last fifteen or twenty years.  Irene made it for me, it’s great.
My favorite drink is ________.
At our most recent murder mystery party (just last Saturday evening), J’Neil played the part of a bartender, and she had a fully stocked bar, with lots of different drinks available.  She also had three blenders, and mixings for her orange julius type drinks, a pina colada concoction, and a strawberry blended drink.  She was kept pretty busy (but still accomplished most all of her goals for the evening).  I didn’t have the chance to have one of her drinks that night, but she made me one the next day – I think she called it “orange sunset.”  Man was it good.  She’s going to have to make me drinks way more often than she has.
I am most happiest when ________?
“Most happiest”?!?!?  Who wrote these things, even I know that’s not right.  I’m “most happiest” when I’m home.
If I had to eat the same kind of food for a month, what type would it be?
We’ve come up with a sugar-free version of the cheesecake I make.  Kristin has been living on it lately.  The other day she mentioned that by her calculations, she needs me to make two of them a week.  I will admit that it’s pretty good, but I don’t know how she manages to eat it so much.  I would get tired of it at 25% of the pace she’s on. 
My favorite show on TV?
I love Netflix…  seems I don’t watch any live TV these days, unless it’s a ball game (can’t wait for the NFL to start!), or sometimes Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart (are those considered live TV?).  I watch lots of movies, and old series where I don’t have to wait a week for the next episode.  Right now we’re in the third season of The West Wing.
What city was I born in?
I was born in Logan, Utah, though I don’t remember it.  It was some time ago.

The Animals, Black Sabbath, Blondie, The Clash, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Herb Albert, Lovin Spoonful, The O’Jays, The Police, Bonnie Raitt, The Ronettes, Sex Pistols, Traffic, The Yardbirds, Neil Young, ZZ Top.
What do all these have in common?  They’ve all be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.  All fine musicians, sure, and I wouldn’t ever argue against them being inductees.  However, these, and many, many others have been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame while Rush has not.  I’ve been trying to think of a comparable injustice to use as an analogy; there is none.  That Rush has not been inducted is an injustice on a level that has no equal.  This year the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is inducting Run DMC.  Are you kidding me?  Hip Hop Run DMC?!?!?!?!?  Sheesh….[heavy sigh].
Rush has 22 consecutive gold records, and is fourth behind The Beatles, The Stones, and Kiss in all-time gold record acquisitions for a band. Fourteen of those albums have gone platinum.  Their lineup has remained unchanged since 1974, and each of them have been recognized as outstanding musicians in their respective fields.
I’m not political by nature, but now I’m going to ask everyone to sign this petition.  I’m not sure it’ll matter much, but I feel a little better for signing it, and even a little better still for asking you all to sign it.

This week we’ve had two big events in the family!   First, on Tuesday we had the birth of our sixth grandchild, Carson Erickson!  Pictures are worth many, many words, so here’s a couple of pictures.  All the details are on Heather’s site.

Then last night, Samwise recieved his AA degree.  While he may not be actually “going” quite yet, he’s definately taking steps!  (More photos on Kristin’s site.)

I have a client that periodically sends out some of those “God Loves You” things via email.  Last week he sent the one entitled “Where God Wants Me.”  I found even the opening picture disturbing:

If you haven’t seen this thing, it’s a PowerPoint slide show that tells the story of a number of the survivors of the September 11th attacks on the World Trade Center, and how miraculous their survival is, assumedly because they were where God wanted them to be.  For example, one wasn’t in his office because it was his turn to go out and buy doughnuts that day.  Another had put on a new pair of shoes, consequently got a blister and so stopped to get a band aid to put on his foot.  It was all very lucky for these folks, but miraculous?  Give me a break.  Implying that they were saved, or spared, because God directed them with these simple diversions is absurd.  That implies that everyone that didn’t survive was directed by God to be where they were.  At the very least He didn’t care about where those people were.  By that logic, God should share responsibility for all those that died that day.  If God gets credit for the survivors, He has to take responsibility for the casualties.

There were many stories of courage, honor, valor and heroism from that day.  Many, many people did miraculous things.  I am much more comfortable honoring them and their stories than I am trying to give God credit for “miracles.” Not only do I think He doesn’t need the recognition, I can’t imagine He would play that kind of favoritism.

Remember earlier this year when that plane crash landed in the Hudson river and everyone survived?  That’s another thing that has been described as miraculous.  Balderdash.  Everyone survived because of the competence and clear thinking of the pilots and crew.  Referring to a plane crash back in 2005, Jon Stewart hit the nail on the head when he observated that “If anything fits the description of miracle, it’s the ligthning that hit the plane…  God’s plan was thwarted by their [the plane crew and rescue teams] satanic competence.” I love that phrase, “satanic competence.”  I may have to try to find ways to use that this week.

Comedian Dennis Regan has observed: “If a plane crashes and no one is killed, they say it was a miracle that no one was killed.  If a plane crashes and a few people are killed, they say it was a miracle that more people weren’t killed, and if a plane crashes and there’s only one survivor, they say it was a miracle that that person survived. If a plane crashes and everyone is killed, they say it was a miracle that it just missed hitting that warehouse when it went down.  If the plane hits the warehouse they say it was a miracle that it didn’t hit it an hour earlier when it was crowded with people, and if it hits it when it was crowded with people and everyone is killed, they go and find that guy that missed the flight by ten minutes and they say it was a miracle that he got a flat tire on the way to the airport.”

Apparently, we’re so starved for miracles that we have to make them up.

Tune in later for examples of some of the things that I find miraculous in my life.

Footnote:  I would be remiss if I didn’t link Jon Stewarts “Miracle on the Highway,” truly one of the best pieces on this topic I’ve ever seen.