Is it just a game?

As you all know I love Duke basketball, yesterday I watched them lose to Villanova. I would summarise the game as a poor shooting performance by Duke. As an avid Duke fan I have noticed their loses in the NCAA tournament have come from their inability to score. But needless to say Duke lost by 20. Sitting on the couch watching the clock wind down and my mood turn to crabby my wife says, "It's just a game."

"It's just a game." WHAT!!! NO WAY!!!!

Many people who have competed with or against me would describe me as the most competitive person they know. My competitiveness has been with me my whole life and started all the way back in 8Th grade when my gym teacher made a terrible call. I could have brushed it off but no I took the ball we were playing with and threw it right at my teacher. I then spent the rest of the day assigned to in school suspension.

If you are a true competitor everything you do you wanna win and accept nothing less. When I played basketball I was so competitive my speciality was guarding the other teams best offensive player to keep them from scoring. I prided myself in keeping players in check and off the scoreboard. My parents can testify the tone of my voice would be the indicator if I had just won or lost. This competitive spirit continues with me to this day.

So, with this type of attitude, it is impossible for me to accept a saying, "it is just a game." When you compete and hate to lose as much as I do you would never accept this cliche. Yes I know I was never a Duke player or a member of the University but when you love something so much you will never accept second place or be happy to watch you team lose whoever they may be.

Now for those of you who do not relate to sports, let me try and use this analogy to help prove my point. I know someone who I won't name that likes to obsess about her weight. She weighs herself morning, noon and night and if the number is not what she likes to see, she could be quite crabby the rest of the day. She then might go and work out more, not snack, or reduce her food intake. The number will also determine her mood and anxiety level. My response should be but I know better, "It's just a number honey!"

Now how is it OK for her to be crabby because of her weight but not OK for me to be crabby when my favorite team in the whole world just lost?

It would be fun to hear any comments any of you may have to help me understand if you believe or disbelieve in the cliche I can't stand, "It's just a game."

Why I live in Duluth

As high school graduation approached I was ready to get out of Duluth. I told my parents when time was near for me to go to college I did not see myself coming back to Duluth ever. I told them I was tired of the "small" city and wanted to live in the big city. The big city I was talking about was Minneapolis.

Once in Minneapolis it was love at first sight. I was ready to experience the big city and have stuff to do. While I lived in Minneapolis I did just that. If I would not have lived in Minneapolis I would not have met my wife, met life long friends and most of all not learned how much my heart was in Duluth.

There were many good things about my times in Minneapolis but as I got older and my priorities shifted (A wife and daughter) I realized Minneapolis was not the place I wanted. When my child was first born, living in a crappy apartment with crappy neighbors, no yard and paper thin walls, I knew it was not the place I wanted Emma to grow up in. I realized to live in a good neighborhood and buy a nice house had to be in Duluth. Lucky for me I had extended family in Duluth who really made the move to Duluth possible. They were so supportive and helpful. Without my extended family there is no way Heather and I would be here today.

Here are the things I love so much about Duluth you can't get in Minneapolis. First there is no such thing as rush hour in Duluth. I know many Duluth natives will say they fight rush hour traffic but until you battle the traffic in Minneapolis around the hours of 8AM or 5PM, don't talk to me about rush hour. Second, I have no fear about letting my daughter at age 4 ride her bike in the neighborhood while I get dinner ready. (Yep, that's right I cook!) Third, I live in a house. With the jobs I been able to have, buying a house in a good neighborhood would not have been possible in Minneapolis. Finally, I love the outdoors. In Duluth we are 5 minutes from Lake Superior, 10 minutes from a hiking trail, and 30 minutes from getting on a lake to do some fishing.

I love the life I had while in Minneapolis but my heart is true and will always be true to the cold, snowy, summer lacking city of Duluth, Minnesota.

March Madness

It is that time of year again when the nation sits down with their bracket in front of the TV to watch the most exciting time during the sports year. 65 of the best teams in the country compete for title of best in the nation. Here is why I believe March Madness is the best time of the year.

First, filling out a bracket is one of the best parts of the tournament. Filling out a bracket requires no skill or knowledge but perhaps just a good ability to guess. There are people who spend many hours studying the teams to help them get an edge on who will move on and who will go home. Still, others (mostly women) pick a team with a good name, cool mascot, or flip a coin. Most times for the women it is a very effective way to win the office pool.

Second, the level in which these college athletes compete is incomparable to any other sporting event. Don't get me wrong I know other college athletes work just as hard, but when it comes to a team tournament, I can't think of another tournament comparable. These college athletes lay it all on the line every night or it could be the end of their season. It is not best of 7 and there is no BCS just putting them in a National Championship game. They are not driven by the million dollar paycheck waiting for them after the game (well OK maybe some of them do) but there is a level of competition this tournament brings out in them that is unmatched. And with this level of competition the excitement of watching them compete is a lot of fun.

Finally, it gives me an excuse to procrastinate on all house projects, playing with Emma, and cuddling with my wife. Now many of you probably may wonder why I procrastinate the cuddling with my wife. Well to clear all the confusion, while I'm watching March Madness my wife is pretty much doing anything else. She doesn't doesn't understand how I can sit down and watch all that basketball. I don't know how to explain it but I love college basketball.

Just to give you all a hint, if you ever wonder what I might be doing these next couple weeks, I would suggest you check the TV schedule. If college basketball is on, odds are extremely good I'm laying on the couch enjoying a bowl full of popcorn with a diet coke, every single college basketball game they put on TV.

P.S. So far (as of March 23, 2009) in my fantasy bracket league, I'm in last place. So much for my great basketball I.Q.

"Debit card? What's that?"

As technology expands so does the possibilities of things you can do. But some things are just fine the way they are. I write this to share my recent experience with a DTCU bank teller.


Every so often one must reorder checks obviously because you are running out. So instead of doing it online I decided to call my bank to save time. Upon answering the phone I explained to the teller I needed to order some more checks. Upon my request her response to me was, "Did you know a debit card couuld reduce the number of checks you would write?" Now upon hearing this information, the smart ass in me ALMOST said, "What's a debit card? I've been stuck in Antartica for the last 10 years of my life and have never heard of a debit card." Instead I said, "Yes, I have a debit card."

To my surprise, her response was, "Did you know you can use your debit card to pay bills? This would reduce the number of checks you write which would save you some money. Also, you can pay your bills online!"

Now I bet most of you know what I wanted to say. For those of you who can't guess I'll tell you. "WHAT?!?! you can pay bills online? I did NOT know that.What's the internet I have never heard of it? As a matter of fact, what's a computer?" Instead I took a deep breath and explained to her, "Yes I do pay bills online but some bills still require a check. For example, I have to write a check for Minnesota Power and Comfort Systems, because they don't offer online bill pay."

She acknowleged and placed the order for my checks. I thanked her and our conversation was over. Now I can understand her need to try and upsale but did she for one second think I had never heard of a debit card or online bill pay? I mean come on, even my folks who are three times older than me know what a debit card and online bill pay are. (No offense Mom and Dad, I love you!)

Out of courtesy I am letting you know the next time you order checks your bank representative might offer the suggestion of getting a debit card or utilizing online bill pay. Be prepared and be careful not to let the smart ass in you take over.

Tax Season

Well, as another tax season comes to a close, I have not waited as long as I normally do to complete my taxes but I did try something new this year.

I have always decided it was worth my money to have taxes done by H&R Block. Well this year, I received quite a bit of encouragement from numerous people that I could do my taxes. So, today I gathered my paperwork, computer, pen, paper and got started. I got two different recommendations on tax sites to use. One was completetax.com and of course Turbo Tax. Well I decided to start with completetax.com. After all my information was added and the result was a deficit for both state and federal, I decided to give Turbo Tax a try. This site was a bit friendlier and easier to understand. I did everything I was suppose to do and the result was a bit more to my liking. I had a federal rebate but for some reason I owed the state almost 3 times more than last year. I went back and double checked my work and still owed the good old state of MN quite a bit of money. I became easily frustrated and after about 3 hours it was time for a break. Out of frustration I posted a new Facebook status and within a few minutes got a call from my good friend Chris. He offered some help and back to work I went. I checked my work and turned out I had left out a "0" from my W2 for state taxes. Boy that made a big difference and soon my state deficit was reduced by a third and back to what I had hoped it would be when I first began. The fee for me to do it online Turbo Tax was also about a third of what my H&R Block bill was last year. I am quite happy with this accomplishment and will tackle this project again next year. Boy it is sure fun to grow up and have more and more responsibility. But, for a first timer I would definitely recommend Turbo Tax. Feel free to post any questions you may have and I bet I might be able to help.

Why I hate Brett Favre

Living my whole life in the state of Minnesota I have many loyalties: Minnesota State Fair, Golden Gopher sports, Minnesota T-Wolves, and most importantly the Minnesota Vikings. I would consider myself a loyal Vikings watcher every Sunday no matter what. Because of my loyalty to the Vikings I have inherited a feeling that most Vikings fans have which is hate. This hate in particular is for one specific man and his name is Brett Favre.

If there is one team on the planet I hate more than any other it is the Green Bay Packers. Who was the leader of this team for 17 seasons? That’s right, Brett Favre. I sat by and watched him orchestrate fourth quarter drives to defeat my Vikings more times than not. I sat by and watched him win a Super Bowl. I sat by and watched him receive a MVP trophy, twice. During this whole time I will go on record and say I was cheering against him every time. I want nothing more than to watch him fail, get hurt, or retire.

What drives my hatred even more now is talk of people in this great state wanting to see him run out of the tunnel at the Metrodome in purple and gold. How can people turn a cheek and want a man who has done more to hurt this organization than help? How can people be so selfish for a Super Bowl victory they would support the signing of this man? I realize all his records, I respect his ability to play the game but I will never support or agree with bringing him to Minnesota. I hear the argument if we had a quarterback we could win a Super Bowl but NO to Brett Favre.

I hope and pray Brett Favre will never put on a Vikings uniform and so far my prayers have been have answered. But if by any chance Brett Favre manages to sneak his way here to Minnesota, I will not ever, and I mean ever, watch a Minnesota Vikings game in which Brett Favre is the starting quarterback.

My Love, My Baby, My Iphone!

As some of you may know, the one piece of technology I love to buy all the time is the cell phone. Heather can testify, since the Iphone was on the market, I asked her weekly, " Can we get an Iphone?" Heather's response usually consisted of, "Eddie, do you need a new cell phone or want a new cell phone?" I tried to make my argument better and better each time but needless to say I didn't get my new Iphone like I wanted.

About a month before Christmas I don't know what happened but Heather came to me one day and said, "Eddie, I really think we should get Iphones!" I was floored. I was stunned. I was looking at our check book. I responded, "Heather do you need a new cell phone, or want a new cell phone." She responded, "Ha Ha very funny." So without further hesitation we were off to AT&T to get our new cell phones. Upon arriving in the store I was like a kid in a candy store. I looked at the Iphone in ahhh. I talked to salesmen, bargained and used some moxy to try and get us the best deal possible. I even talked to other customers who said the Iphone was the coolest thing they ever bought. Well, after a short period of time, Heather and I decided our Christmas presents to each other would be the Iphone.

Since obtaining the Iphone in November I must say it is the coolest thing I have ever used. Let me give you a run down of just 10 things you can do on the Iphone. First of course the text message. It is so nice instead of having to make a call, you just send a quick message that requires no verbal interaction. Heather and I decided to get unlimited text messaging and let me tell you it was a good thing we did because combined, Heather and I send out about 2500 text messages a month. Second, you can surf the internet. Even better yet when you have WiFi access, surfing the internet is lightning fast and painless. Third, surf around on Itunes. You can buy a song on Itunes and instantly listen to it on your phone. Wanna listen to that song you just heard on the radio again? No problem, for only $.99 you can have it with the touch of a button. Fourth, instant map access to pin point your current location. Then if you need directions to a future destination your Iphone will map it out and give you turn by turn directions to get you there. Fifth, it's also an Ipod. All your songs, movies, and podcasts are viewable. (Quick side note, Emma loves watching Wall-E on my Iphone.) Sixth, you have instant access to up to 6 email accounts. I mean who has 6 email accounts? But if you did, you would know instantly when your emails arrive and read them right away. Seventh, you can sync the calendar on your Iphone to your calendar on your computer. This way when you are working and add a new event it automatically uploads to your phone without any further work. Eighth, instant weather updates to where ever you might be. The Iphone automatically determines your current location and gives you an up to date, seven day forecast of what to expect. Ninth, you can download for free or for purchase applications that will help make your life even easier than it already is. I know you have all seen the newest commericals from Apple advertising, "There's an app for that." Let me share my favorite app I downloaded for free. Shazam. This app is so cool, remember hearing that song on the radio and you have no idea who sings it? Well, if you run shazam while the song is playing on the radio, shazam will listen to the song and in about 10 seconds tell you the name of the song, the artist, and album. You also get a link to watch the music video on You Tube, and a link to Itunes to purchase the song. Finally, I almost forgot you can make calls too.

Don't be fooled by this and think these 10 things are it. Oh no! It appears the possibilities are almost endless. This phone is so user friendly that I would be happy to give you a demonstration if you would like. They are a bit pricy but trust me when you have it, you will tell everyone like I am telling you, "It is the best investment I have ever made!"