Monday Movie Quote #35

This week's movie is one of my favorites. I used to have some of these quotes on my computer so that when I'd hit a button, it would say them to me. So I got a little nostalgic. Here ya go...

"Stop whining! You kids are soft. You lack discipline."

Last week: Hoosiers. "Strap, God wants you on the floor."

A Real Kick in the Ass

I just want to touch on the subject really quickly, because if I spend too much time on it, it'll just get me all fired up.

Adam Vinitieri signed with the Colts.

He took the money. Good for him.
He'll be kicking indoors. Good for him.
He's playing for another very good team. Good for him.
He left the Patriots, the team with which he won 3 Super Bowl Championships...

What a jerk.

Now what am I going to do with my #4 jersey?

Monday Movie Quote #34

I know I missed posting last week, but all of my time has been completely occupied with college basketball. For those of you that don't get involved in March Madness, you just can't understand how time consuming it really is. And in staying with the basketball theme, here's your quote. It's an easy one, but a good one.

"Welcome to Indiana basketball."

Last week: Galdiator. "How dare you show your back to me! Slave, you will remove your helmet and tell me your name!"

Monday Movie Quote #33

People at work have a habit of quoting movies all the time. And most of the time, it makes it really easy to decide which quote to use. I just hope they keep using different movies.

"Father, congratulations. I shall sacrifice a hundred bulls to honor your triumph."

Last Week: C'mon, no one knew Forrest Gump? Yeah, there's that whole "box of chocolates" thing, but I prefer "I'm sorry I ruined your New Year's party, Lt Dan. She tasted like cigarettes."

Sports Week: Back Page

All heart. 110%. Playing through the pain. You hear all of these sayings when referring to people who participate in football, hockey, cheerleading...

Yeah, you heard me. Cheerleading.

Last weekend, Kristi Yamaoka, a cheerleader for the Southern Illinois Salukis (it's a dog...look it up) fell while performing a routine during a timeout. The difference is that this wasn't your ordinary fall. She fell while on someone's shoulders who was on someone's shoulders. That's right folks, a triple decker. Kristi fell about 12 feet onto a hardwood floor on her head. Ouch.

She was fastened to a gurney with a head and neck restraint. But this is when it gets crazy. As she's being wheeled from the court, the band started to play the school's fight song. Whether it was a subconscious reaction to get the fans excited or if it was intended to show the crowd she was okay, she continued to cheer by doing the arm movements that went along with the song. Either way, the crowd went nuts and SIU went on to win the game.

Later it was found out she broke her neck. Fractured vertebrae to be exact. She's expected to make a full recovery. While in the hospital, she repeatedly asked if anyone had taped the game. Not that she wanted to see the accident...she wanted to know who won the game.

Cheerleaders are tough chicks.

Sports Week: Page 3

This story's from a couple of weeks ago, but it's so good it deserves to be repeated.

There are few basketball players who have the ability to score 20 points. There are far fewer who could do it in 4 minutes. And there's only one that I know of that is autistic.

Jason McElwain is. Jason is Greece Athena High School's student manager, and probably somewhat of a mascot. Always there, always helping, always keeping spirits up. He did everything and anything for the team, as long as he was there to be a part of the team. The coach wanted to repay Jason for all of his hard work and devotion by allowing him to play in a game, but the team was on the verge of a division title, so there were no guarantees. But coach told Jason to suit up, because...well, you never know.

Well, the time did come. Sure it was mop-up time, but what the hell. They were up, and the students were chanting his name and had signs bearing his name. What's the worst that could happen, right? The worst is how it started anyway. An errant 3 pointer followed by a missed lay-up. Then it started.

Three after three. Six out of ten actually. Should have been 7, but the ref said his foot was on the line. After it was all said and done, he had grabbed 20 points and the hearts of everyone in the stands. His teammates carried him off the court on their shoulders.

His reaction? "I ended my career on the right note." I'll say you did. Good job Jason, and good luck in the future in whatever you do. And if it includes basketball, don't let anyone tell you to stop shooting.

Sports Week: Page 2

Page 2 is usually reserved for a story that would qualify as a "the lighter side of..." story. After a bit of a downer with yesterday's post, let's try to lighten it up a little, shall we? How about a golf story then.

Picture this. It's the third round of the Ford Championship at Doral. Phil Mickelson is hitting his approach shot into the green at the 10th hole. His shot goes a little wild and ends up striking a spectator standing beside the green. It hits him in the wrist. More accurately, it hit him on his watch breaking the clasp. Probably a cheap watch anyway. A real watch could withstand being struck by a golf ball right?

Well, Phil felt bad. After he got to the green, he went over to the guy to see if he was alright. He saw he was OK, but that his watch was broken. Ever the gentleman, Phil reached into his pocket for a couple of bucks to pay for a replacement watch. He ended up giving the guy 200 bucks.

TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS!!!!!!!!!!

Phil, I hate to break it to you, but not all of us have $200 watches. Just because he's got enough cash to watch you play golf while sucking down $7 beers doesn't mean he spends 2 bills on timepieces.

But what I found more amazing was that Phil didn't pull out the 2 one-hundred dollar notes from his wallet. He simply fished them out of his pocket...all crumpled up. Kinda like when a 6-year-old puts a couple of wadded up bills up on a counter when they're buying candy. They just happened to be floating around in his pocket along with his ball marker, a couple of tees, a pocket knife, and his Chap Stick. When I have a $100 bill, I iron it, laminate it, and only take it out for special occasions.

Sure he lost the tournament, but it's gotta be good to be Phil.

Sports Week: Page 1

It just so happens that this week, there were a number of sports stories that caught my eye. I've decided that I want to write about all of them. So tune in all week...I'll have something new each day.

On the front page, I want to address the passing of Kirby Puckett. Puckett died yesterday at the age of 45 after suffering a stroke. Sure, he may have had issues off the field after his career was over, but I'm not going to get into that.

For those that don't know, Puckett spent his entire 12 year major league career in Minnesota and won 2 World Series titles. He won 6 Gold Gloves and was on 10 All-Star teams in a row. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 2001. Sure, he was a great player...but that's not why people liked him.

He was an everyman. He was 5'8" and pudgy. But damn he could play ball. He ran faster than he should have. He made plays he shouldn't have. He had more hits than anyone thought was possible. And he had so much fun doing it, you couldn't help but have fun right along with him.

My grandparents' names were Frank and Viola, so when my family found out that Frank Viola was a pitcher for the Twins, we always rooted for the Twins (after the Sox, of course). That's when I first remember seeing Kirby. Build more like a football player (or a weeble-wobble) than a baseball player, it was amazing to see just how much of the outfield he could cover, and how fast he could do it. It was a sad day when he retired due to his having glaucoma, but not nearly as sad as yesterday.

Kirby, we'll miss you and your enthusiam of the game. Even though you were here for a short while, thanks for what you did during the time that you were here.

Monday Movie Quote #32

I apologize to everyone out there for missing another week. My boss came back to work after being gone since last October, so there was a transition of power that made last week a little hellish. But I'm coming back strong! Here's one of my all time favorite quotable movies...

"Sometimes, I guess there's just not enough rocks."

Last week: The Truman Show. "You were real. That's what made you so good to watch."