What I am Thankful For- 2016
Well, here we are at Thanksgiving again. I have to think of some things that I'm thankful for.
Well, straight off the top, I am thankful for my wife, Sara. She is so understanding. I have to be away from home four, sometimes five nights a week. It may be more once scholastic bowl gets underway. But she lets me go and do what I love. And I love her for that. And I miss her. I am happy and thankful that our wedding went over without a hitch. Except that I forgot to complete the slide show that Tim Dominicus had put up the projector screen specifically to show. Nertz. Everyone probably had their expectations to see a great movie. Well, I could have. If only I'd had time.
I am thankful that the Chicago Cubs won the World Series! And the NLCS pennant! Neither had happened in my life time. Think about it. My dad reacting is something I now have as a memory, not a fantasy. Thanks to Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Kyle Schwarber, Jake Arrietta, Jon Lester, Kyle Hendricks, Ben Zobrist, Wilson Contreras, Carl Edwards Jr. Miguel Montero, Mike Montgomery, and Aroldis Chapman. And anyone else I failed to mention. This was a lot of fun to watch.
I am thankful for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame releasing their ballot, remembering to include Yes, Chic, Kraftwerk and Janet Jackson again, as well as seeing ELO, Journey, The Cars, Depeche Mode, and Pearl Jam! Yes, the 90's are going to start trickling in quicker than the 1980's, as evidenced by Nirvana and Green Day making it in on ballot one. But we have a shot at getting another great artist in who released hits from the 1980's. I'm all the more appreciative of this, because I had a student yesterday complain about why we were listening to '80's music when I had a Chicago Christmas album playing on my iTunes. (For the record, that album was released in 1998.) So there are probably hundreds of rock critics and industry specialists who balk at the power ballads, synth, pop, and hair metal bands that populated the 1980's charts. It's nice to see the Rock Hall have the candor to allow an artist who had a hit in 1981, or 1985, or 1988 into the Rock Hall.
I am thankful that I got my job at Lewistown. More good days than bad.
I am thankful that... I am thankful that... I am thankful that Hillary Clinton at least won the popular vote. There are lots of not so nice people in America. And I'm not saying that everyone who voted for Donald Trump is a measure of that. But I am glad enough people listened to their better angels to reflect a popular vote that hinted that rhetoric alone would not earn the votes. Yes, it's going to be a long four years. A painful four years. But I was filled with hope last night when Lewistown's Girl's Basketball Team took the hardwood against Peoria Manual. Lewistown is a white community. It's homogenous. Peoria Manual is urban Peoria, and I think that a 90 percent majority of their team was black. But the game went over incident free. Both teams saluted the veteran, Mr. Stufflebeam, a 94 year old 1940 graduate of Lewistown who was honored at the beginning of the game before the National Anthem. We faced the flag placed behind him. When he hoisted himself out of his wheelchair and removed his cap to the Star Spangled Banner, it was hard not to get choked up. The game went over without a hitch. We played with the fundamentals and defense preached by Gene Hackman in Hoosiers. They played with a very tall, athletic team that was trained to protect the basket and protect the ball. They beat us by about eight points. But it was incident free. I was proud of both teams.
Trump does not speak for all Americans. He cannot. I think at least 66 percent of Americans find him off-putting, and really don't look up to him regardless of whether they voted for him. And we will continue to be diffident to his tastes in people. This was evidence. We're going about our life. We still do not care what he thinks. And for that, I am thankful.
Well, straight off the top, I am thankful for my wife, Sara. She is so understanding. I have to be away from home four, sometimes five nights a week. It may be more once scholastic bowl gets underway. But she lets me go and do what I love. And I love her for that. And I miss her. I am happy and thankful that our wedding went over without a hitch. Except that I forgot to complete the slide show that Tim Dominicus had put up the projector screen specifically to show. Nertz. Everyone probably had their expectations to see a great movie. Well, I could have. If only I'd had time.
I am thankful that the Chicago Cubs won the World Series! And the NLCS pennant! Neither had happened in my life time. Think about it. My dad reacting is something I now have as a memory, not a fantasy. Thanks to Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Kyle Schwarber, Jake Arrietta, Jon Lester, Kyle Hendricks, Ben Zobrist, Wilson Contreras, Carl Edwards Jr. Miguel Montero, Mike Montgomery, and Aroldis Chapman. And anyone else I failed to mention. This was a lot of fun to watch.
I am thankful for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame releasing their ballot, remembering to include Yes, Chic, Kraftwerk and Janet Jackson again, as well as seeing ELO, Journey, The Cars, Depeche Mode, and Pearl Jam! Yes, the 90's are going to start trickling in quicker than the 1980's, as evidenced by Nirvana and Green Day making it in on ballot one. But we have a shot at getting another great artist in who released hits from the 1980's. I'm all the more appreciative of this, because I had a student yesterday complain about why we were listening to '80's music when I had a Chicago Christmas album playing on my iTunes. (For the record, that album was released in 1998.) So there are probably hundreds of rock critics and industry specialists who balk at the power ballads, synth, pop, and hair metal bands that populated the 1980's charts. It's nice to see the Rock Hall have the candor to allow an artist who had a hit in 1981, or 1985, or 1988 into the Rock Hall.
I am thankful that I got my job at Lewistown. More good days than bad.
I am thankful that... I am thankful that... I am thankful that Hillary Clinton at least won the popular vote. There are lots of not so nice people in America. And I'm not saying that everyone who voted for Donald Trump is a measure of that. But I am glad enough people listened to their better angels to reflect a popular vote that hinted that rhetoric alone would not earn the votes. Yes, it's going to be a long four years. A painful four years. But I was filled with hope last night when Lewistown's Girl's Basketball Team took the hardwood against Peoria Manual. Lewistown is a white community. It's homogenous. Peoria Manual is urban Peoria, and I think that a 90 percent majority of their team was black. But the game went over incident free. Both teams saluted the veteran, Mr. Stufflebeam, a 94 year old 1940 graduate of Lewistown who was honored at the beginning of the game before the National Anthem. We faced the flag placed behind him. When he hoisted himself out of his wheelchair and removed his cap to the Star Spangled Banner, it was hard not to get choked up. The game went over without a hitch. We played with the fundamentals and defense preached by Gene Hackman in Hoosiers. They played with a very tall, athletic team that was trained to protect the basket and protect the ball. They beat us by about eight points. But it was incident free. I was proud of both teams.
Trump does not speak for all Americans. He cannot. I think at least 66 percent of Americans find him off-putting, and really don't look up to him regardless of whether they voted for him. And we will continue to be diffident to his tastes in people. This was evidence. We're going about our life. We still do not care what he thinks. And for that, I am thankful.