Can't Jump...Just Yet

So last week, I announced that I'd be moving this blog over to wordpress. As I was starting, I thought I had made the jump a bit too quickly and abruptly. Although certain things made me want to make the jump, I thought I should just make time for myself to blog and slowly make the move. So, I will still be blogging here but at the same time will be blogging at the new spot while learning the ropes and deciding which step I should take, if any. So keep tight, I'm not going anywhere, yet.

Short Love Poem

Recently, my mom gave me a case of my old school-work from grade school. Going through it all, I found this cute little poem and got a good laugh out of it.

Short Love Poem

It's hard to love
The tallest girl
When you're the shortest guy.
For every time
You try to look
Your true love in the eye
You see
Her bellybutton.

Almost Perfect

Paul Sancya / Associated Press

Last week, Armando Galarraga, of the Detroit Tigers, was on his way to pitch the 21st perfect game in baseball history. But, what was supposed to be the 27th and final out was blown by umpire Jim Joyce. It was a routine grounder hit to the second baseman by Jason Donald, who was called safe by Joyce but was clearly out.

There have been many debates about the call, the issue about replay, and even about reversing the call and giving Galarraga the perfect game. However, for me, the bigger part of the story is the reaction of Armando to the bad call. Instead of over-reacting and going crazy, he gave a sly grin to the ump Jim Joyce. I believe that small act allowed others to feel for Joyce. After the game, Joyce felt really bad and knew that he cost Galarraga the perfect game. The next day, he was emotional before the game as Armando presented him with the lineup cards.

Deep down, I feel this story is about being humble and not letting things, big or little, get in our way and living life. In life, sometimes things don't go our way but we can't let it ruin or disrupt our lives. We must go on with our lives and just enjoy the ride.

These two men will forever be linked. And I thank Armando Galarraga for teaching us this lesson about humility. He is not only what the sporting world needs but also our self-absorbed, celebrity obsessed society needs.

We all strive to be perfect but we always can't be.

John Wooden's Quote of the Week

In honor of John Wooden, who died yesterday at the age of 99, I would love to share his classic sayings in the coming weeks and months. In his 99 years, he has shaped not only the game of basketball but the lives of so many. Being a basketball coach, I have certainly shared some of his sayings and teachings. Here is one:

Be quick, but don't hurry.

RIP John Wooden, 1910-2010.

Nneka On Tour

Photo by marcnesium.de

My latest project with Cornerstone Promotion is working again with Nneka. Her new album, Concrete Jungle, is out in stores now. She is currently out on tour with Nas and Damian Marley on the Distant Relative Tour.

Usually, one of the perks of the job is getting into the concerts for free. Unfortunately, for this show, the record label wasn't able to get us tickets. It was definitely a bummer but I thought it would be fun to work the show anyway.
I got to meet a few people, give out posters and tell people about Nneka, who was opening the show. It was a nice evening on the streets of Oakland.

Make sure you go and pick up Nneka's album, Concrete Jungle and look out for her on the Distant Relative Tour.

For more info, go to nnekasworld.com/us.

A New Spot

I've been thinking for the past few days about making a move. I've been thinking about making a blogging move. I've been blogging here at Blogger off and on for almost two years now. I've grown up here in the blogging world and definitely have more growing to do. I've been going back and forth about it but it seems that going in a different direction is the way to go. I created my new home a few months ago but wasn't ready to make the jump yet. I think that with this new move, I'll have more access to blogging. Thank you all so much!

Come along with me to thathumbleswagger.wordpress.com!

Recovering From Memorial Day Weekend

First of all, Happy Belated Memorial Day to all those that gave their lives defending our freedom.

And with all that comes family get togethers, barbeques and food. Lots and lots of food! So the weekend started on Friday with a prayer service and family dinner for my mom's uncle, who died a week or so ago. Then, Saturday started with a bit of spring cleaning in the garage. My aunt and uncle came up to visit from L.A. so we all went up to Tracy to my other aunt's house for a little family get together dinner. It was a night of lots of food, the Laker game and some old family photos. A good night to hang out.

The next day was a friend's barbeque. That was night of lots of food, lots of booze and lots of laughs. I think it was too much food, booze and laugh. Especially the booze. I don't usually drink a lot but...that brought me to Monday. Where I spent all day nursing a good ol' hangover.

Oooh, my head...

But I'm all better now.

Excerpt of the Week

"I wanted so badly to lie down next to her on the couch, to wrap my arms around her and sleep. Not fuck, like in those movies. Not even have sex. Just sleep together, in the most innocent sense of the phrase. But I lacked the courage and she had a boyfriend and I was gawky and she was gorgeous and I was hopelessly boring and she was endlessly fascinating. So I walked back to my room and collapsed on the bottom bunk, thinking that if people were rain, I was drizzle and she was hurricane." – from Looking For Alaska, by John Green

Restart, Reset

So I've been doing a little cleaning and organizing in my room, doing a sort of reset. I know I haven't been around for awhile now and I keep saying that I'm back and disappear for a month. I have been busier so far this year than I've been before. But as I was doing a bit of spring cleaning, I was going through my old notebooks and realized that I miss drawing, doodling and writing with pen and pad. Technology is great and all, it definitely gets things done easier, but there's nothing like relaxing by yourself and just writing and enjoying your environment. Yes, I still love my new iPhone but I've pulled out a few notebooks from their hiding places and put it right next to my phone.

And from this little epiphany, a few things are starting to reset in my life, starting with this blog. I definitely want to do something with this little project. My creative juices are starting to flow again...will keep updating the greatest and the latest.

Amazing Games

In these times that I've been away from blogging, basketball season has been going on. This is the last week of the season and it started off today with an incredible game and effort.

So let me set this up for you. We started off the season with 21 kids and had to split them up into two teams. The team that played today started out with 10 guys. About midway through the season, one kid quit so that left nine. So, for this game, I was informed that a couple of the kids, who were two of the best players on the team, wouldn't be able to make the game because they had a baseball game at the same time. So that left seven. One kid, unfortunately, went to Hawaii to attend his grandmother's funeral. So, we're left with six. So, we're expecting six players.

As the game starts, not only did one player not show up, which would have been fine, but two players didn't show up! So me and my co-coach look at each other and shrug. We have to play with four guys and they were up for it. I told them to just play and have fun and see how it goes. As the game goes on, we're still very much in it. It's a close game, going back and forth. They do keep us in it by sending us to the foul line throughout the game. If we could hit our free throws, we would be up six to eight points. But it felt very much that we had a chance to win. These four guys ranged from one of our best players, who was aggressive with the ball but very chatty, one good player, who wasn't really a basketball player but was smart and played his role, one pontential player, who had lots of basketball IQ but needs to focus on getting better, and one player who wasn't athletic but is a great listener and tries hard. These wide range of players came together and pulled off the great win!

Before the game, I wasn't expecting much. I just wanted them to have fun and get them rest through the game. But when it looked like we had a chance to win, my heart was racing. It we getting too exciting! I must say that it did feel great to see the crowd, our fans, parents, friends, jump up and cheer when the buzzer went off. It was a great effort and I'm very proud of them!