Still believe in the pursuit of happiness for all us?

I have my own thoughts on homosexuality that are not very open minded but this isn't about me or any other heterosexuals, nobody is telling us how to live our lives. When it comes to gays in our country I believe we have it wrong when it comes to gays serving in our military and the ability for them to get married or some form of partnership. I here people arguing against gay rights and one might believe in listening to them that gay people are forcing their way of life on to the rest of us but I feel the opposite is true were we imposing our values onto other people.

When you have several military leaders including the Secretary of Defense calling for the end of don't ask don't tell one might think that it's time for a change... So why is this still an issue? I don't have an answer, only a bunch of expletives to show how dumb I think it is that we are dragging our feet on this. I'm not going to ague that the sher amount of divorces are doing more harm to the institution of marriage then gays getting married, stay with me. What happened to equality amongst our fellow man(woman). I can talk about the need for partners to be able to make decisions when it comes to finance or medical issues but that still doesn't get to the heart of the argument.

All of us should be able to pursue happiness in whatever form or whomever we want choose. I don't see a reason to touch religion because it's the easiest way for the discussion to round and round in circles and it is too easy for some of the nay sayers to hide behind the cross. I'm going to end my little rant with this, we might not approve of another persons lifestyle (as if it's up to us approve) but that doesn't mean we should be so quick to tell others how they should live.

Maybe there is one positive... I think

Maybe I can salvage one thing through this chapter in my life, I finally learned to cook. Previously the phrase if you can't stand the heat stay out of the kitchen had applied to me in every way. I find it a bit ironic that I looked up to someone who so enjoyed fine foods and a good bottle of wine, yet I've been so plain in my taste in food. I didn't even try wine until earlier this year, due to my parents encouragement of me to expand my horizons.

While my dad was in the hospital in April, I would visit him for a couple hours a day after I was done practicing golf and then my mom would visit my dad after she would come home from work. I started cooking actual meals, not just popping stuff in the microwave or Ramen noodles, for my mom before she came home so she could have a good dinner before she left for the hospital to spend the rest of her evenings with my dad. In the beginning the meats looked more like they were boiled rather than grilled as well as the rice and pasta being undercooked, both products of me being scared of burning the food... the vegetables were good. Through trial and error I learned my own style of cooking, browning the meats just enough while keeping them tender, the rice and pasta became not just eatable but really good. The veggies managed to get better too. Along with learning how to cook my mom and I came up with out own little cool salad. I have to give an honorable mention to my aunt Carmen for starting my down the road of healthy eating, thank you Aunt Carmen!

When my dad finally arrived home after being in the hospital for three weeks I continued to cook for the family, it gave me a sense of pride that my dad liked my cooking. We would argue about eating the salad and vegetables but he loved the stuff that came from the stove and that was good enough for me. He could not have a glass wine with me any more (because it upset his stomach) but we could enjoy a cold bottle of Blue Moon together watching the afternoon baseball games. Cooking was something I felt I should do to contribute to our family through those hard months and I learned a new passion that I can take from this chapter in my life.

Why bother watching sports?...

I tend hear this a lot : "Why do people watch sports? Watching a bunch of millionaires play with a ball is stupid." Well there might be something to be said for that statement... I can see once anyone bothered to look at some the contracts of the players they would find themselves asking how are these guys getting paid so much money to play a game? I don't know what to say to those people, I think some of us are getting too cynical. I can't get enough of sports, I love the real life drama, timeless stories of the underdog, and tension of watching the games play themselves out not knowing who will come out on top.

I think this past year in rooting for my teams I've seen all the highs and lows of watching sports. I can talk about being in the dumps with Raider football and UCLA basketball, watching the games hoping for some spark of life but knowing all there really was for me was to look forward to "next year". Watching Dodger baseball and Cardinal football, seeing flawed teams come together to make a run in the playoffs only for them to come up short again... However, the thrill of watching the Lakers march to back to back championships over the hated Celtics was second to none. Maybe I'm being naive and watching these millionaire jocks play games is dumb but I just don't see it that way.

I guess I'm always going to be a sucker for watching people play out their dreams on a stage in front of the world, seeing if they can make it work together. Watching for guys like Arjun Atwal, age 37, win his first ever PGA tour event and in doing so becoming both the first Indian born player to win on the PGA and the first Monday qualifier to win on tour in 24 years. I love stories like that. Of course I can just break it all down as simple as I can, in the end watching sports is a great getaway from the daily grind...

Still don't know where to turn...

I've wanted so much to write about whatever the topic of the day had been... But there is still just one topic on my mind; where did my dad go? Since I've last written I have had some good days and Sunday was a bad day. I had woken up with a weird feeling, done some chores, turned on the tube to watch the golf tournament and then it hit me like a tone of bricks. It was all I could do to compose myself and stay calm... A single question kept coming up in my head, where did my dad go?

I have heard from other people that it will be hard and the emotions come in waves and that they are there for me, not to seem like an ass, but none of that really helps. I don't think anyone can help, this will just be something like everyone else will I have to navigate through.... Alone. I can only hope I don't crash into too many people.

My Dad

I almost don't know where to start... Well let me start with Happy Birthday Day Dad! There is no way for me to fully express just how much I miss my dad, he has been to me the man who raised me, my best friend and my coach. Time cannot be explained to me where it feels like it all has happened so quickly and yet it feels like a year has gone by. I frequently get those weird feelings where I think if I just turn around he will be there and this was all just a dream. The twenty-seven years I've spent with my dad were invaluable and I love him for the time we spent together.

These last few months were hard and great to be with him, I saw him humbled physically and still show the vigor for life that all great men show. Since the heart surgery it had become very hard for my dad not being able to do many of things he had become accustomed to doing nor being the husband he felt he should have been to my mom, he tried so hard. Dad did manage in his own way to enrich the lives of those he kept in contact with, whether it be the retelling of old stories or something anecdotal just to get a laugh. Always showing concern for others in whatever situation they were in. He had always been the kind of person where it did not matter what ones background could be, Dad could relate to anyone. I'd be willing to bet that not too many people knew just how big of a liberal he really was; but that kind of thing didn't matter to him as long as he felt that you were a good person. My dad showed me what it was to be a good friend and great man in his last days.

In the end I have so much to be grateful for whether it be the game he showed me how to play, the friend of a lifetime he was to me and most importantly the father figure I so desperately needed. I just remember now, when Dad first taught me the game golf, he was a titan on the golf course... he really was that good. He was an imperfect man but who really is perfect, my dad was man who always improved himself no matter how hard it was and I admire him for that. There are so many things I can go on and on about but I will put it simply: Dad was man who served his country dutifully, a generous man, a caring father and a great loving husband.

I love my dad and I will miss him so...

Gabriel Richard Tellez – 08/12/1943 – 07/24/2010

To All Veterans THANK YOU!

November 11Th is the day to recall the end of Wold War I, we all know this day as Veterans Day. On this day we celebrate, honor, and solute those who have served in our armed forces past and present. There are those who served and are no longer with us and loved ones serving abroad and those have come home after their tour of duty... Thank You for your sacrifice. I don't have the luxury of this forum to speak my mind without the people who have served in military. This is not a nice world that we live in and we are allowed to live our lives in relative peace thanks to the brave people who have served in our military past and present. To all who have served once more THANK YOU!

Something We Must Address For The Soldiers

I believe it is important now that we have a new administration coming in along with a newly empowered congress that we modernize the equipment of soldiers in the field. If we are to field a modern military and deploy our brave young men and women it is not too much to ask the we give the best equipment available. I'm not talking about making them a more gruesome killing machine they are already the best fighting force in the world, but when there guns jamming in the middle of gun fights and our troops using out of date body armor we should be embarrassed. This is not the time to go out spending on anything but when it comes to our soldiers this is one issue we should be cheap on.


I want to quickly explain what are soldiers are dealing with is a forty plus year old weapons system (assault rifle) that uses a direct gas tube to cycle through ammunition. When a bullet is fired the weapon redirects the propellant gas to push back the bolt and reload the rifle. The gas used to cycle the weapon is very hot and very clean meaning in perfect conditions the firearm needs to be cleaned very often to insure reliability. Now put that gun in desert conditions with the dust making it's way into the weapon, now combine the dust and dirt with the hot gasses heating up the internal components and you will get a gun waiting to fail on you. Think we can find something better, well what if I told you our military spent more than 30 million to find a solution and found it but they are still using the Colt M4 and M16 a forty plus year system.


In the Fall of 2007 the Heckler & Koch XM8, Fabric Nationale SCAR, Heckler & Koch 416, and the current Military issue Colt M4 were in a dust test. The H&K XM8 is the firearm the US military spent More than 30 million developing to replace the Colt M4. In the dust test all of the weapons were put in the same conditions and fired 60,000 bullets, they were judged by how many stoppages each weapon had. The XM8 had 127 stoppages, the FN SCAR had 226, the H&K 416 had 233, and the Colt M4 came in last with 882 stoppages that is nearly 7 times worse than the XM8. The military has said it would cost too much to move to a new weapons system and the soldiers feel fine with the M4. I think if you were to talk to any veteran that when a gun jams on a soldier it can often cost them their lives, so what should really be the cost we pay.


Our military has used the same line when it comes to the body armor issued the troops and the bottom line is that we as people must do better than that for our loved ones we send into harms way. We have new leadership in Washington and I believe with all the issues we must address this one must not slip through the cracks.

The Tragedy Of Our Dreams

All of us see the winners in what ever sport we are watching and of course for every winner there is a loser. There are many reasons why one side wins and the other loses and all involved would say that they were happy to be able to compete on a grand stage, but what about those who never get there. We often don't get the chance to see those working so hard and giving all they have just to reach their grand stage but in the end fall short of their dreams.


Nobody can argue to feel sorry for any competitor that either loses on the grand stage or never realizes the dream of playing on such a stage it is the risk one takes for following the dream. I guess one can say luck has just as much to do with winning and losing as all the hard work and practicing to improve on ones skills. That is a very scary concept for competitors that in some cases it might not matter what they do if none of the breaks go their way, from my own personal it can be pretty disheartening. Well like I said earlier it's a risk that one takes to chase the dream and needless to say there are no guarantees on the field of play.


One of the biggest reasons for this post is that PGA Q-school and there can at least a hundred different stories of heart break with players from all over chasing their dream. The only thing I can say that give any comfort for those who won't make it on tour is at least they had to courage to step up try when many others only give excuses for why they didn't make it big. After saying all of this I don't know what would actually be worse to make to within sight of a major championship and falling short or to never make to the big show at all.

Go Blue!... No Wait, Where Are You Going?... Come back!

For all of us sports fans that grew up with the traditional football powers like Michigan, Nebraska, and Notre Dame I have to ask what happened? Sometimes the expectations of having to be on top coupled with the attitude that it is ones right to be number one can lead to very rash decisions. It is not yet known whether or not Michigan will share the same fate as Nebraska or Notre Dame two other traditional powers that made hasty moves at the head coaching position and are now mired in college football limbo. Sometimes you just have to be careful of what you ask for.

Last year Michigan started their season with such high expectations at No. 5 in the country and very quickly fell on their face with aloss to Appellation St. and then promptly fell out of the polls all together. After that game Michigan fans began calling for Lloyd Carr's job, later loses to Oregon, Wisconsin, and again to Ohio St. sealed his fate. Carr lead the Wolverines to victory over SEC power Florida in an absolute thriller; ending the season with a over all record of 9-4 and still being seen as an absolute disaster. Soon after the decision was made to part ways with Carr the University of Michigan proceeded to go into a public relations nightmare of a roller coaster ride by batching the hiring of LSU's Les Miles a Michigan alumnist. In the end they wound up with West Virginia's Rich Rodriguez and this season under the new head coach has been less then stellar so far with a 2-4 record.

You would like to think that Michigan would have learned a lesson watching Nebraska remove their head coach Frank Solich in favor of ex-Raider coach Bill Callahan. The Callahan era was a unmitigated disaster and that is being nice; discontinuing time honored traditions, poor recruiting, and the biggest sin of all becoming a doormat to Missouri and Kansas. College programs go through up and down cycles and if universities continue to want to change directions at the drop of a hat they risk becoming another Nebraska.

There is another school out there that could have shared in the same fate as Nebraska that being Penn State. It certainly seemed the Nittany Lions would take their place in college football limbo which left many fans calling for long time head coach Joe Paterno to step down. I think it is safe to say they are glad that Paterno stayed, now the ever youthful Joe Pa has the Lions relevant again sitting on top of the Big Ten conference with a undefeated record. When things go bad with our teams it is easy for us to want to go in another direction but I think it has shown with enough proof that the grass is not always greener on the other side.

I Wish McCain And Obama Could Give Us A Reason To Laugh

On Thursday night the annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner was held at the Waldorf Astoria in New York where Senators Obama and McCain traded some pretty funny jokes, with all the bitterness in the campaign it was actually refreshing to see. I know this dinner was for a great foundation but I could not help but see the irony of these candidates at a white tie affair with our economy teetering on collapse. On the other hand we had a chance to see a glimpse of the campaign that we were all promised without all of the negativity that has managed replaced an actual debate on the issues. I wish the people involved in the campaigns as well as its supporters could take a look at how the two candidates conducted themselves and at least try to emulate the manner that the two senators held themselves to without all the volatility.

I don't see anything wrong with calling your opponent on to mat for his or her vote on policy when it comes to the issues actually affecting us as a people, but for one I am done with watching campaign surrogates beating irrelevant topics into the ground. Waking this morning and watching Gov. Palin go on and on about issues that Barack Obama has already answered for and offer nothing else in terms of any policy improvements. Seriously what can one do but roll my eyes in disgust.

Why can't the candidates give us a reason to laugh, a reason smile, or just a reason hope that tomorrow will be better? Well if anybody wants to get away from all the gloomy news I suggest that they find comfort in friends and loved ones because it does not seem like there will be anything else to do for a while, well at least until November 4Th.

A Reason To Have Faith In Our Fellow Man

It has been a tough few weeks for all us watching the economy dive and not know where we are going to be at the end of this violent ride. Small businesses are struggling to keep their heads above water, big companies falling by the wayside, and 401ks evaporating quicker than steam in the wind. One awful effect from all this financial chaos is all the home evictions, many people losing their homes due to bad home loans and we can argue who was at fault with the loans but what about the renters who did nothing wrong and are still being evicted. Last week Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart took a stand and ordered his deputies not to evict renters on the 11 hour of the eviction process without proper notice from the banks.

“When we’re doing this, and we’re destroying peoples’ lives, we’ve got to make darn sure we’ve got the right people,” Dart said. Renters in many cases were being notified of their landlords building being repossessed when officers show up to their homes removing then from their homes. I remember seeing Sheriff Dart on TV saying he was not going to one of those people in history that were saying that they were just following orders and lacking all sense of humanity. Wow, it's about time we got to hear of someone following his conscious in a mess started by people suffering from the lack of moral character.

I don't see the financial situation getting better in the near future but there is some hope that we will get through these rough times with the help of people like Sheriff Dart. We hardly ever hear of people doing the right thing, it seems like only the bad, gruesome, and the bleak news make their way in front of us. Thank you Tom Dart for doing the right thing.

The Great Torre...?

After four World Series titles it is hard to argue with anything Joe Torre does and for the future Hall of Famer he almost always knows what strings to pull... almost. There is no doubt about the calming influence he has on a club house, watching him pull together a divided clubhouse in the LA Dodgers and deal with all injuries including one big outfield signing that never showed up this year. But asking him to handle a bullpen, you had better bring a firetruck to put out the fire.

At the end of last year the Dodgers were a mess and certainly anybody hired to take over the job was going have their hands full with a divide between the veterans and the younger corps of players. All year it has been a give and take with Torre, he will give you hope in getting the most out of the players and then take the joy away with his calls during the game that will leave you pulling out your hair. Torre gives you players pitching with all the confidence in the world to take on any one and batters learning swing the bats; but then have them taking pitches on green light counts and yanking pitchers too early leaving himself trying to mix and match the roster for the rest of the game. Often just giving games away. The Dodger manager is the ultimate players coach and the most compulsive over thinking manager in the game today.

Some would say to Dodger fans you should just be happy to be there if not for Torre and one Manny Ramirez the team would not be there. But I also say once we get to the playoffs we should not waist this opportunity. We all know he will have his players loose and well motivated to take the series back to Philadelphia it is just a matter of whether or not will he shoot his team in the foot with another lesson in mismanagement. Let's go Bums!

The Man Who Should Have...

It is very hard to imagine that John McCain could fall so far from grace in the minds of so many independent thinkers. To those of us who still try to hold McCain in high esteem seeing this incarnation of the man as simply sad. It did not matter whether you leaned to the right or the left for those independent thinkers has he been a champion for us all, where nobody thought he represented one ideology and he was well respected on both sides of the isle.

For me my problems started when John McCain to courted the religious right whom McCain has never been fond of and vice versa, and to hire the very same people crucified him in South Carolina in 2000 all I can do is scratch my head. McCain once said of the campaigners that hehas know hired, they deserve a special place in hell, I'm paraphrasing. I and others have been disheartened to see McCain running the same type of campaign that he had once spoke out against. When this campaign is finally done I would like to think that could still hold the Senator in high regard but as of late to have his campaign inflame the worst of our society as a minority I can only stand back and watch in horror with my head in hands.

I might think that I have a diverse spectrum friends in my life from the flaming lefties to the staunch conservatives all of whom have a deep respect for. Again nobody felt McCain represented them point for point but they felt they could sleep well if the Senator was in charge. Even now the only conservatives that I can find to vote McCain are only doing so because of R next to his name. Whether over the wars in the Middle East and the fear of another draft, the lack of competency over the economy, or the lack of judgment in picking Sarah Palin as his VP pick; conservatives all around are finding reasons for not to vote for McCain. One can't help but notice that in his own party Senator McCain has even lost the confidence of his own supporters and I can't help but wonder if well ever get back.

When I first became interested in politics my two heroes were Sen. Biden and Sen. McCain, they have called it how they seen it and have been the most intelligent statesmen that I have known of in the senate. There are many reasons why I no longer have confidence in the Senator from the campaigns inflammatory tactics against Obama or the lack of follow up on such things as the closing of the Enron loop holes. I hope to meet John McCain some day but as for today I have no reason to vote him.