July

July 29 – A day of rest. Yes it is Friday and yes it is supposed to be a workday but remember I am on a “no work” Friday bent. This marks Friday number 3 of consecutive weeks and I am starting to get used to it. Of course there are the occasional interruptions as folks know where I am and do track me down on occasion, but on the whole all is good.

It is a day of rest because yesterday was our annual “Jumpstart Games”. Those of you who have suffered through past content may know that a number of years ago our division started an event for under privileged GTA kids that we called “Fun in the Sun”. It started the first year with about 125 kids that we brought out to Eglinton Park, “treated” to a bunch of games, a BBQ lunch and sent home with a new knapsack full of school supplies. It was a huge success and grew over the years to last year’s event hosted in Aurora with 520 kids and a number of other divisions pitching in.

This year in view of some internal reorgs, we decided to rebrand our Fun in the Sun program to become the Jumpstart Games! I thought last year we were pushing the envelop at 520 kids BUT I think the official count this year was 597! Think of the fun, 600 kids turned loose in a park with people like me to manage, corral and entertain them!

Over the years, I have developed a “specialty” in leading the “soccer/baseball” – “kickball” event – basically baseball played with a soccer ball that you kick to hit. The key to this game (for control) is the pitcher who besides rolling in the superb pitches has to try and keep the defending mob from swarming the plate on each pitch thus avoiding multiple cases of soccer ball to the melon injuries. You guessed it – that’s my job! Having to go to the full bend and crouch with each delivery, there are a few aching and creaking parts today BUT – the kids had fun.

 Here is a shot of some of the herd "clamoring " for food!

Not sure about the "chef" skills demonstrated by some of the cooks - a lot of smoke in play!

A lousy shot because a lot of the "seated" kids are blocked out be the volunteers ans organization stall members but hopefully this gives a scope perspective!

For those of you who may not know, Jumpstart is Canadian Tires National supported foundation that provides resourcing or funding to allow kids who don’t have the means to participate in sports. It is active in Oakville as well as many other areas and does a lot of great work.

Here is the link to the Jumpstart web site for anyone who is interested, wants to get involved in some way, or make a donation.

Now – back to the deck and some serious therapeutic lounging – I wish – I expect there is a long list of “to-dos” lurking out there.

Enjoy a safe and long weekend as another month bites the dust.

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July 25 – Hooray for long weekends – Bah Humbug on going back to work. The good news is that this is another four day week for me and then into another nice long weekend – a four day special this time as we head into August.

The heat seems to have broken a bit for now but such was not the case over the weekend. Friday, a friend of mine tried to convince me to go golfing, but with my ability and that weather it definitely would have been “a nice walk ruined”. However, I do have new clubs (picked up for next to nothing – literally – in one of my Can. Tire sample sales so he did trick me into a trip to the PGA to whack a bucket of balls. Being the magnanimous soul that I am (read Idiot) I sprang for two large buckets and by the time I finished hitting my pail (and I use that term loosely), I was drenched in sweat and had not put on much of a performance. I guess I should not have been teeing off in sandals with no glove but what the heck, it seemed like a great idea at the time.

Friday night we stopped off at the races on the way home from a Rockwood visit as Jack had two horses in. Both horses had tough trips and went good miles – no wins but they picked up purse money and I did not bet so we were winners all around. For someone who has been around horses as long as I have, it is unbelievable to see how things have changed. Used to be that you could win races with a horse that could pace consistently 2:08 with a strong finish but now you can’t even qualify to race at that speed. Used to be you dreamt of the “miracle” of owning a 2:00 horse as that was your key to money and success. Now, usually every race on the card goes in better than two minutes cheap claimers and low condition races included. Conditioned trots were going over Mohawk in 1:50 without folks batting an eye, an event that was unheard of or not thought about not that long ago with Lexington Kentucky’s Red Mile track being the only place where the “fast” miles went in “time trials” not races where they had a thoroughbred “rabbit” to set the pace and allow the gaited standardbred to win at the wire for the official time.

Ben was over Sunday for a visit which is always a treat. It serves to remind us that though time change, they do stay the same – kids are kids (my Grandson is just better). When our boys were young, one of their favourite toys was a small red ride on car that was named “Beep Beep”. Why? Because it had a little yellow steering wheel with one of those button horns in the centre that made a beep beep noise when you bopped it. Believe me it got bopped regular and that car logged miles in a number of “homes” zooming around from room to room and banging into everything in site – time and again. So when we were out this weekend, Grandma says – we have to get a Beep Beep for Ben so he has something to ride on at our place. (After years of faithful service B B 1 had moved on to the great plastic wrecking yard in the sky). So when we just happened to be at the local Toys R Us, we came across “McQueen” from Cars that is now the gussied up version of good old Beep Beep. It takes to AA batteries, has a musical bop horn, key ignition, gear ship, rev buttons, radio buttons and some other stuff but still at heart it is a ride on Beep Beep reincarnation. Home it goes and Ben shows up Sunday. He was not big on riding it yet but he loves grabbing on to the push bar and pushing it aroubd the house and, or giving it a good shove and then chasing after it grinning. He also figured out the “noise” makers and spent a lot of time being very “pensive” deciding how they worked and which to punch, pull, push next.

In short, Beep Beep was a big hit!

Pensive!

Who ? Me ?

Bad news / sad news – the fun stuff above takes your mind off of some of the horror and waste going on in the world around us. The acts of unspeakable violence in Norway and the waste of a talent like Amy Winehouse, whether you were a fan of her music or not, should make everyone stop and think about the joys they have around them everyday, and how precious they should be, because you can lose it all in a heartbeat. In the scheme of things “events” like these should help put many of our own “issues” in perspective. Things could be a lot worse!

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July 21 – Three days in a row – it must be heatstroke!

GO – ldilocks = My new metaphor for GO Transit. GO Doesn’t like it when it’s too hot, GO doesn’t like it when it’s too cold, and even when it is just right they tend to fall asleep on the job. Today was a classic. I head off to my usual (crowded) 7:03 Express at Clarkson. I had already got the message that the hot weather was swelling the tracks and that it could break them so the trains would have to GO slower and take longer. My first thought was “How will I notice?” Whatever, so I get to Clarkson and am standing in the already sweltering (unshaded) platform just in time to hear the announcement that the 7:03 Express was cancelled and would be express from Appleby. Wonderful – no help to me – now wait for the 7:13 local – all stops to Union. Then, just to rub it in, the “cancelled” 7:03 GOes roaring past at approximately 200 mph, which is apparently slower than the “normal” 60 and thanks to Bernoulli’s principle just about sucks me off the platform. Finally the pedantic 7:13 comes along and we crawl into Union Station to start my day.

Then, getting ready to head home, the friendly “alerts” start coming in on the email hotline about delays due to (insert excuse here) on the Lakeshore West line. I get to Union, head up to Track 9 for my usual 5:34 Express (before it is announced to beat the crowd) only to hear announcements about delays and do not proceed to track level. As delays often mean last minute track changes that turn into mini mob scenes, I headed back down to the somewhat cooler concourse only to almost get trampled in the herd as the train is announced on its normal track – 9. I beat a hasty retreat back into the heat to wait and wait for the train, trample my way on to get a seat only to discover that I have picked the one car on the train with broken AC and am now locked in a sweatbox.

Wonderful Day, Wonderful Transit System, Yetch!

Good thing I am off tomorrow, but given a few of the grenades I tossed before I left, we will see how that goes.

Hot? – Oh yes. A current check (around 8:00 PM at the Toronto Airport puts the current temp at 37 C wit a Humid X to 48 C. For us old fogies still living in the dark ages where you only used Celsius in the lab for your Physics and Chemistry classes and Fahrenheit was what the thermometer said, that Humid X translates to 118.4 degrees F. Body Temp is only 98.6. We are not designed for this.

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July 20 – Got back early from my Woodstock tour and ran into my own to do list. Not a good plan. Thought I would go for the unheard of “Summer Double” – back to back week day blog content – not that I have much to content.

Osgood – appears to be a topic of conversation regarding his candidacy for the HHOF now that he is retired (good). I think the point has been made with not much need for more as I agree the answer is a simple “NO”. Anyone who has read any of my diatribes on my Wings will know that I considered goaltending as the perennial weak link in recent history in a dynamite club. Over the past dozen years, my biased estimate is that the Motown boys would have won twice as many cups if they had a top flight tender. While I don’t mean to sell Osgood short, anyone who makes the NHL at any position is a talented player but there is talented and then there are the “stars”. Osgood was not a star and if you are not a star you don’t belong in the HHOF. I recognize that “star” can have a number of defining characteristics, longevity, finesse, leadership, toughness, raw talent, presence . . . but the interesting thing is that “starkness” is something you just know – it is a “gut” thing. It is the “Oh Yeah” response in a conversation, the top of mind “you know”, the wealth of exciting memories, monents and events you know by heart.

Osgood – sorry – not there.

Since everyone always wants you to “back it up with facts” here is one, just for fun.

I think save % is an important stat for a goalie. Better than wins and losses. Detroit stats:

Osgood .905, Cujo (Detroit) .911, Hasek (Detroit) .911. Too bad they don’t have these stats for the old guys.

Getting into the HHOF should be tough and a reward for only those players that are true standouts at their position in their era under the conditions of the time. Move on.

Summer Fun – last night was not a “fun” night as the heat wave is probably luring folks to lakes and pools and unless common sence and caution prevail, bad things can happen. Just around the Golden Horseshoe last night there were four drowning in three separate locations – three young ladies and a mid 50’s man. Cottages, boating, swimming and pools are all great things but to repeat a recent phrase – “be careful out there”!

Quick BC Note – my “Northern” contact called me post last night’s commentary. He is just shaking his head on the – how can they just ignore the rules wavelength.

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July 19 – and an infrequent appearance. Signs of summer slowdown and missing people are everywhere. With the current “Heat Wave” weather it also tends to wrap an invincible cloak of lethargy around almost every activity as well. In trying to burn off my 2010 vacation days I have instituted (at least for three weeks – more TBD) a “no work” Friday policy. While it adds a little more Monday – Thursday pressure to get things done, the Friday – Sunday Weekend is a wonderful thing. One can unfortunately get used to this schedule and then meet an unfortunate obstacle when the vacation days run out.

Missed it again – We have lived in Oakville for almost 25 years and I am almost embarrassed to admit that I have never made an appearance at Midnight Madness. I must admit, this year I came close as I actually thought about it but did not do the deed. Probably should have gone as I was thinking about heading out for the Irish band music and it would have been gorgeous weather to sit back, tip a few and see if they knew Floggin’ Molly. Hopefully everyone else would have been running around looking for bargains in the trash and treasure sales and left me alone. Have not heard or seen much of a response on the event so I have no idea whether it will survive for another year and give me a chance to finally go – or not!

Reference – For those people citing Hill Street Blues (one of my favourite old shows), Joyce Davenport is a much better memory.

Formula Novels – As many know, I enjoy reading – usually as a mindless exercise (I’m eminently qualified) to “switch-off” on a bunch of other things that are racing through my head clamouring for attention that I’m am not really prepared to give them 24/7. As a result I have stacks and stacks (I think it is around 30 bins and 2,000 titles) of pulp fiction plus some other stuff floating around. On the weekend, other than devouring another Stuart Woods (I had about three lined up and they are gone), I started a bit of a re-org on the bins to put them in some semblance of order – i.e., all 30 something Clive Cusslers in one bin instead of scattered all over. As per usual, I somewhat underestimated the chore and now the basement is a mess with stacks of books all over. Some people are not happy! In the hunt, I have discovered I have about 60 books where somehow I have more than 1 copy. I also reminded myself that it is a real skill that some of these writers have to churn out book after book, often several a year with inter-linked characters, or continued but separate plot lines and even running multiple character sets that are linked through their novels – e.g., Stuart Woods with Lucas Davenport, Virgil Flowers and Holly Barker. While quite the skill it really reinforces their ability to “formularize” their books. Recognized key characters, flexible settings, visible and anticipated bad guy, brilliant detecting or analytics from the hero, close shaves with disaster and final “surprise” ending with the unveiling of the ”real” villain who if they have done their job write in dropping the break crumbs you end up with “I knew that”! Maybe that’s partially why I have ended up with 60 odd dups – they all sound the same so how can you tell if you read it?

My new secret, copyright years are a good clue if you have your favourite authors and failing that, do what I now do - carry a copy of your library list with you to the bookstore and check!

Body Checking – While not the “Source for Sports” this may be the source for info on “What’s Happenin’ Now” on the BC front. This just gets better and better and is starting to read like the plot of one of my Agatha Christie novels.

One of the common competitors for MOHA teams in Exhibition games and in tournaments (like the Frank Sabatino Memorial Tournament – FSMT) has been the “Red” level teams fro the Mississauga Hockey League (MHL) – e.g., Port Credit, Streetsville, Meadowvale. . . ).

That will change, or at least take on a new dimension as the MHL has made their position clear.

“How does this affect the MHL?  This would only affect the MHL teams in the Minor Peewee Red, Peewee Red, Minor Bantam Red, and Bantam Red level.  Therefore, there would be no body checking at these levels for the upcoming 2011-2012 season.  All other MHL House League levels already have no body checking.  For the MHL 'A' teams, there are no changes resulting from this press release.”

That covers our Eastern Neighbour. If Web sites are to believed, the same thing holds true heading West with the Burlington BLOMHA Boys:

“OHF Removes Body Checking from Recreational Hockey. 

BLOMHA already has this policy in place for House League however this will now pertain to House League Select in Minor Midget and Midget next season.”

Going north, and temporarily skipping Brampton (because I want to) I hear that Barrie Minor Hockey has apparently been granted the same “pass” on the OHF ban as MOHA implies and plans to offer body checking this fall. Interestingly, the same source indicated that in direct contact with both the OMHA and OHF, Phil McKee (OHF Executive Director) reiterated the OHF policy whereas, apparently Richard Ropchan (Executive Director of the OMHA) declined to answer the question.

As Arte Johnson used to say from beneath his Prussian Helmet on Laugh In – “Verrry Eenteresting”!

Stay tuned for more info on this entertaining topic as the cards and letters keep rolling in.

By the way, the calendar marches on – we are more than half way through July (after a beginning of May announcement) and the facts are clear as mud.

Wonder what the former “Red” players and parents are thinking / expecting?

Woodstock - On the road tomorrow - to the place (Ontario and not New Brunswick) not the home of the greatest rock concert of all time. Don't know when I will be back - probably not until the next instalment of BC Wars!

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July 11 – After a very quiet weekend. I had all kinds of wonderful intentions of doing a bunch of things but with the great weather and the siren call of the deck / gazebo, things just came unglued. There is something so relaxing about sitting with your feet up, sipping coffee, or your beverage of choice with the mouldy oldies tunes playing and a good book in hand that just saps your energy to get up and “do” something / anything.

Talk about your major “veg”, I read two complete Stuart Woods novels over the weekend and got well into a John Sandford,  in addition to anything else I did. I had thought about convincing Jane to drive up to Hanover for the races Saturday, (the “in-laws” had two entries in the Ontario sires stakes Grassroots 2 year old Colt Trot), but we stayed home and watched them via webcast. Did not use to be able to do that before the internet. They had a pretty good night – good news / bad news. The one colt had an unfortunate break (and broke) going to the gate so he never had a chance. However, the other one had a pretty good trip and finished second.

I had thought about going down to the Honda Indy on Sunday to try and shoot some pics but a) I had not scored any free passes, b) it is really noisy, c) it was really hot and d) I felt really lazy – back to the Stuart Woods novel. Sounds like from the results there were a few grumpy drivers who think IZOD plays favourites.

Now that the “strawberry” season is over (even for my unsigned roadside guy and his IPod), we have to wait for the next official Ontario fruit phase. Which is first? Peaches or fresh Corn on the Cob. Again we are talking fresh Ontario grown stuff, not that supermarket dreck. It used to always be a big deal growing up to make the drive to Shakespeare as that is where us Ellice township people went to get our peach supplies – bushels of Red Haven peaches for canning and eating (not to mention the pails of red cherries – you did not buy pints or quarts, you bought five gallon pails). We were smart enough to grow our own corn but if you could not wait for the garden variety, a little fresh field corn tasted just fine, as long as you got it early. That reminds me and raises a question about planting gardens and such. We used to get and plant and grow and eat corn from seeds we planted that had this purple dust like powder all over them that would always stain your hands. I suspect it was probably some fertilizer or herbicide or something that is now illegal and a proven carcinogenic but back in the day us farmers did not worry about any of that stuff – or maybe that is why they made me plant it – gloves? – What gloves?. Clearly it shortened life expectancies as my “farmer” grandfather only made it to his mid nineties whereas my city guy only reached mid-eighties. Maybe that was because he was exposed to gas in WWI and worked in the CN Blacksmith’s shop in Stratford – in that super clean environment. And we think we have it tough today when the AC is a bit off!

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July 6 – A good trip to Montreal yesterday but we will have to wait and see if it was productive. Weather was great, food was better and flying from the island is a must, compared to the Pearson Cattle Cars. We flew the Air Canada partner (not Porter) this time and it was interesting to see that they realize they have to compete with Porter so that we were treated like real people. They also have a complementary snack/sandwich and free bar for beer and wine. They also asked if I wanted another – which I of course declined! Let’s keep this as a secret since I don’t want it over-run by the masses.

Honda Indy - is this weekend – Friday is free so I might go. Anyone with freebies for the weekend – happy to use them up for you. I went down to the NASCAR event last year with my camera and had a lot of fun. The old – noisy but nice outing.

Note to locals – Agree on “local strawberries” – smell – taste – experience – boxes – baskets and all that stuff! BUT – You don’t buy local berries in a “supermarket” that is so gauche. You either sneak into the local patch and gorge until you are about to lose it, or as you get older, wiser, and cognizant of the legal system you go to the local roadside vendors and get the fresh berries that were picked that morning. The Moorehead clan has had lots – you never get too many – of berries from our secret berry picker who can be spotted sleeping under his tree at the foot of Winston Churchill. We got some there on the weekend that we just had to eat plain as they did not need the normal angel food cake and whip cream to slide down. When we went there, we were not even sure if he was still open as he has this secret marketing plan where he does not tell anyone he is there and does not put up any signs. You have to spot him hiding under the shade tree with his IPod on and his wares AND – they are tasty! Supermarket – BAH!

Body Checking – seems “Survey Says” – YES – we want it!

Now, let’s see how that gets translated. This presents an interesting situation on a number of fronts. Oh, by the way, totally apropos of nothing, when you ask a potential sponsor to click for a form, you might want to have a form – otherwise – poof – no sponsor.

Anyway back to this body checking business. Interesting that the local association says that they would abide by the ruling and yet, on the surface suggests that if the members want checking (as their survey says) that “All divisions affected by the outcome of the survey will abide by the decision”.

Frankly, I am in favour of body checking as part of the game, that players should have a non contact option if they want it, and I am a believer that contact should be part of the game from day one so that it doesn’t become a “hunting season” for some when it is introduced. But, my opinion does not matter. What matters are the “rules” that minor hockey associations are required to observe because they are laid down by their governing body (the Ontario Minor Hockey Association (OMHA)) or their governing body’s governing body (The Ontario Hockey Federation (OHF)) or their governing body’s governing body’s governing body (Hockey Canada (HC)). In practice, the lower body’s rules and regulations must be at least as stringent or inclusive as the senior organization’s and in fact I believe this is in the relevant bylaws.

To me this says MOHA cannot allow House League Select body checking without permission from the OMHA (which they say they have) and the OMHA cannot extend that permission unless it is within the rules and regulations as set out by the OHF or they have OHF permission to contravene the OHF rules – which is not likely and does not make a lot of sense as it obviates the need for regulations in the first place and sets the stage for a free for all. No one is talking about this aspect of the situation (yo - Phil – are you and the OHF Minor Hockey Council / Exec  - are you out there? Are you paying attention? Are you on side with this? If you are, you better publish something on behalf of the OHF, because to the letter of your own OHF regs and wording, this is NOT allowed).

There is significant potential here for someone or someones to get into some serious trouble. If it is the right people I could care less and would be the first to applaud. However, that is usually not the way things work out with the Teflon Turkeys, so everyone involved in this situation / decision making should be dead certain of their facts or make sure their insurance coverage is paid up and extensive on the liability side. The clock is ticking - the calendar turning!

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July 4 – Happy 4^th of July.

As the 51^st State, the 4^th ought to be a holiday in the state of Canada as well. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. I was going to say “check the Corporate ownership” to see who owns who, but that would likely bring the Pac Rim into the equation which does not work for me.

Another Monday and another month. For once we had a long weekend that really was a long weekend weather wise. Other than a bit of a “blow” Saturday night, you could not have asked for a better weekend – other than those complaining it was “too hot”! there is just no pleasing some people.

After a very lean June, things are not likely to get much better on the blogging front in July. There are just too many other things on the go or to do. Given that I am off to Montreal tomorrow, that gives me another excuse to miss more days. Hopefully, I can slide by Schwatz’s for some smoked meat but the schedule looks iffy.

Pride – we all have it, some more than others, and some different types. This past weekend’s “Gay Pride” events in Toronto needs a wake-up call and kudos to Mayor ford for not bowing to the pressure to be part of it. There were obviously a number of folks “marching” in serious support of a lifestyle or orientation and that is fine. Brian burke being a case in point in recognition of his son. However, I would suggest that for the vast majority of the “revellers” that this is exactly what it was – revelry. A chance to get dressed up, painted up, leathered up, lathere4d up and see how big a spectacle you could be. I fail to see how running around in a pair of jockey shorts with you head painted green, a goofy hat and spraying people with a water pistol has any value as a positive or serious statement about a professed lifestyle! Any other day of the year and you are a Belleview candidate with no argument.

And a million people turn out to watch this! How many of them are simply voyeurs, turning out in hopes that the wheels will come off and they will end up with the modern day Zapruder film on YOUTube? Obviously I was not one of the looky looks.

Ball 4 – Er 3 – but go to first anyway. This boo boo has been getting a lot of play with even the Manager of the Seattle squad apologizing to his team for letting it happen. You have to wonder in a Major League game how a batter could walk on three balls and no one in the park challenged it. Chalk that one up to the weird and wonderful.

Walks – speaking of walks, I was watching the Jays Saturday since they were playing the Doc and Philly. The 9^th inning got very interesting when the home plate umpire decided that his interpretation of a strike versus ball was definitely different than the Jay’s closer Jon Rauch. After calling two pitches balls that Rauch thought were strikes (and on one I definitely agree), either of which would have been a “k” to end the inning, the next batter singled in a run (on a close play at the plate and Rauch went “Ape”! normal baseball you say – well yes, but in this case Rauch is 6’ 10”, as big as a house and he had a full head of steam up going after the plate ump – “a little guy” (who I think looked terrified). Even the catcher getting between them looked half of Rauch size with his equipment. Clearly Rauch got tossed but as the manager was trying to wrestle him away, he basically tore the sweater right off him. Off course, Farrell had to get the last word in, a Manager’s job, so he got tossed too. Just to reemphasize Rauch as a force, Farrell is 6’ 4” and rauch literally tossed him aside too like King Kong and Fay Wray. I may have to start watching more baseball but then it will be the next target for “violence in sports”.

This picture does not do him justice - he is a BIG Boy!

By the way, in case you had not heard – Doc won, complete game – yawn!

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