TO DREAM THE IMPOSSIBLE DREAM
First before I get into my story, I need to say welcome back Peter Forsberg and Adam Foote. You were missed while you were away from the Avs. I am not sure if you can help us much right now, but it just feels good to have you back. At least my Forsberg Avs jersey is current again.
Ok, now to what I started this entry about, baseball. With Spring Training in full swing starting today, I thought it would be good state my lofty goals for the Colorado Rockies this year compared with last years goals. Oh what a different success makes in my dreams and hopes for the Rockies.
| 2007 | 2008 |
| Finish above the Dodgers in the standings for the 1st time | Finish above the Dodgers in the standings for the 2nd time |
| Finish with a record higher than .500 | Win The NL West |
| Have a Rockies pitcher win more than 17 games | Ditto |
| Have a Rockies pitcher get a CY Young Vote | Have a Rockies pitcher win the CY Young |
| Have a player really deserve to be at the All-Star Game | Have a Rockies pitcher start the All-Star Game – That is a hint for Clint |
| Be entertaining and competitive | Get Back To and Win The World Series |
| Win more than 36 road games | Win more than 40 road games |
| Give some free tickets to games to the writer of this blog | Give some free tickets to games to the writer of this blog |
LikeMonkey Meditations
- My ‘Lost’ Theories: It is either Treasure Island, Gillian’s Island, or Rhode Island
- I keep reading that 13% of Americans believe that some parts of the moon are made of cheese.
- It makes me wonder what percent of Americans do not believe in the moon landing.
- Then I wonder if they are the same people who believe in moon cheese.
- My ‘Lost’ Theories: The Monster is Wilson; who is a lonely and angry at never being rescued
- It makes me sad.
- That I can so easily pray for my wants and my friends needs.
- Yet, I hardly ever pray for a lot of the injustices in this world.
- My ‘Lost’ Theories: The Others are losers of “Survivor: The Bermuda Triangle”
- Well, if you thought writer strike was hard.
- What would you do if all mom’s went on strike?
- One mom is at least going on strike in Florida according to this story.
- My ‘Lost’ Theories: Jacob is what happened to Mr. Roarke when his job on Fantasy Island ended
- Sure they are remaking a lot of older TV shows.
- Which I am not sure I am a fan of this trend.
- Well, unless they finally bring back a show that was canceled too soon, Sledge Hammer!
- My ‘Lost’ Theories: Hurley is the Skipper’s long-lost grandson
- Finally, the American church no longer needs to hide in fear.
- We will no longer be hunted down for playing the Super Bowl on large screens.
- Commission Goodell is going to let Churches have Super Bowl Parties.
- My ‘Lost’ Theories: It is only a TV show and it is make believe
I CAUGHT A GLIMPSE OF YOUR SPLENDOR
As loyal Monkey Pen members may know, I like to give the blog readers a sneak peek of the photo pages for the website. I do it as a thank you for those who read the blog.
- Flooding in Washington sent to me from ‘Crazy’ Cousin Carol.
- Christmas 2007
- National Western Stock Show Parade from Todd.
There is your sneak preview. If you have any idea for good captions, let me know.
There will be a Westcliffe, Colorado page with photos of my parents truck stuck in the snow.
I LIFT MY EYES TO THE HILLS
With the warmer weather here in the Denver area, I can not help but to think about hiking. Oh, I know it will snow again and it will be cold then warm then cold, etc., and it will be a while before the mountain snow melts. Still, that does not stop me from dreaming of hiking. Actually, I probably need to go snowshoeing, there is good snow, but I have not gone this winter.
Anyways, as I was dreaming of hiking, one blog I like put out some good entries on hiking tips. I thought it would be good to link to the stories here for all of you who like to hike as well.
- Essential Knots for the Outdoors – Need to know what knots every backpacker should know? Then check it out. My favorite part is the entry links to boy scouts site on how to tied the knots. It always comes back what you should have learned in the scouts.
- Trail First Aid – Hey, really, it is kind of list of things to have for your first aid kit, that is if you are wise enough to care one. I know a lot of hikers who don’t.
- Hiking Alone – This seems like a simple, common-sense story. It seems I hear and see of a lot of people alone, not something I recommend, so I thought it would be good to pass it on here.
Ok, that is all for some hiking and backpacking tips. I hope maybe it was useful.
AND I FIND MYSELF PRAYIN’
My deep condolences go out to Monkey Pen Member and dear friend, Matt, on the death of his father. His father had a stroke on Monday and passed away on Tuesday. The funeral will be on Thursday, February 14, 2008.
If you get a second and remember, say a pray for Matt and his family.
LET US BRING THEM RELIEF AND SURELY WE CAN CHANGE
Change is not one my favorite things to do, but it was time. This was the third problem this year I had to deal with. It was the finally straw. The last two problems took too long to fix and it seem this one would take up too much of my time as well. So I made the switch. That is right, I have moved to a different RSS Reader to monitor the blogs I like to read.
I was using Newsgator, but since they updated their system to the new beta version a few months ago the problems have been a headache for me. The latest problem was it would not tell me that a lot of the blogs I read (including mine) had been updated for the last month or so and Newsgator did not tell me. I discovered that I have missed a lot of entries from the blogs I like. That was it for me. Why fight it anymore. It has a lot of great features, but it is not worth it anymore.
I have switched to Bloglines now. I have caught up on a lot of older entries from the blogs I enjoy. So far I am very happy with it. It does not have all the nice features that Newsgator has. However, it does have things that Newsgator did not have, and it updates the blogs when there are new post.
Hum, actually change was not that hard. I hope those who read my blog with the help of Newsgator are getting my updates, if not, I guess when you finally read this entry you can switch to a different reader, also.
Monkey Meditations
- Other Driving Hazards in Colorado Besides The Sinkhole: Texans and Californians
- Are you having trouble understanding you dog, no need to fear, a computer program can now translate their barks.
- As a Code Monkey, it fascinates me they can do this a whole 43% of the time.
- However, I wonder, how they know that percentage? What human or dog could speak English and Bark to help determine that?
- Other Driving Hazards in Colorado Besides The Sinkhole: That mile of highway not under construction
- Moms can always fall back to the fact that they brought you into this world.
- However, this mother of twins will not really be able to say that.
- If she does, the twins can say they keep her in this world.
- Other Driving Hazards in Colorado Besides The Sinkhole: Drivers who think 4x4s can stop quickly on snow
- When I saw the sinkhole on I-25, I was surprised how big it was.
- However, there was one thing that surprised me more.
- That there was not some guy sitting on the edge with a fishing pole.
- Other Driving Hazards in Colorado Besides The Sinkhole: Tired skiers driving to Beau Jo’s
- Well, the battle is over. It came quicker than I figured.
- International Falls beat Fraser for the chilly title of Icebox of the Nation.
- However, who knows maybe the war will continue, and they will live on to freeze another day.
- Other Driving Hazards in Colorado Besides The Sinkhole: Pueblo
- I am happy the Broncos finally got another member in the Football Hall of Fame.Way to go Gary Zimmerman!
- Sadly, probably the best defensive player we have ever had was rejected in his last attempt.
- Mr. Randy Gradishar, you have been robbed. I am sorry, you and the Orange Crush were ignored by the voters.
IF YOU’RE TRYIN’ TO FIND A REASON
Are you sick of the Presidential Race, yet? I know I am. To make matters worst for me is that I find all the candidates for President just awful. It is sick and tired of how bad the people running are. I feel my dog would be much better President than any of candidates left in the race from the Democrat or Republican parties. Thus, I will not be wasting my time to cast a vote in my party’s caucus here in Colorado on the so called “Super Tuesday”. Besides, finding the hidden caucus locations does not sound that fun to me.
I am left feeling the need for a strong third party candidate. However, finding any good ones to support has not been easy. There are not many good ones out there that I have seen. However, there are two different ones I learning towards.
First, Raphie Wiggum from the TV show The Simpsons. He became a candidate in an episode earlier this TV season (before the writers strike). Sure, he is a cartoon character and not 35 years old, but why I should I let that stop me from supporting him. The Democrats and Republicans are given me more ridiculous candidates then Raphie. What I like really like Raphie is his compelling sound bits on Immigration – “Stranger Danger” and his Government Spending – “I only have this much moneys”. To learn more about Raphie’s run for President, Click Here.
The other possible candidate is not one I agree with a lot on the issues, but I just love his honesty. I am tried of politicians who say one thing and do another. I really do not see that to be a problem with General Zod. He may not be from earth and is not real, but he has been able to work with Hollywood very well in the past. That shows some serious strength in his ability to work with foreign countries including Hollywood. To learn more about Zod’s 2008 run for President, Click Here.
DEVIL JUST COME ON BACK IF YOU EVER WANT TO TRY AGAIN
Well, it has been a crazy week with all the holidays. I know I am late, but Happy Kansas Day (January 29) for those of you who live in Kansas, Happy Ground Hog Day (February 2), and Happy Super Bowl Day (February 3).
Super Bowl Day:
I have never been so happy to see a team lose a game as I was when the Patriots lost on Sunday. That includes when the Raiders got blown out by Tampa Bay. I am usually not happy to see a New York team win, but this time I was. I am so sick of Boston teams, but really still of the Patriots and Bill-a-cheat! I am glad justice was served and their deal with the devil (to see a copy of the contract Click Here – thanks ESPN) failed.
Congratulations to the Giants on their Super Bowl XLII Championship. To be fair, congratulations to the Brady Bunch on having the best NFL record ever at 18-1.
It is now a Manning world and we all get to be in it, even the Brady Bunch.
Ground Hog Day:
I hope as always Ground Hog Day, one of my personal favorite holidays, was a great one for you. That you got the gifts you wanted and you got to live your love for that someone special over and over again. It is now six years for me. What a great romantic day.
Kansas Day:
I know it is no Colorado Day, but since a lot of my family is from Kansas Day. However, this year was special for Kansas. They were able to name the 8 Wonders of Kansas.
As I go over the list of the 8 Wonders of Kansas and the list of the 24 finalists, I am bit disappointed by some of the things not on the list.
- The town of Grenola, where some of my family is from. I figure it did not make the list because of how jealous the other Kansas cities are of Grenola.
- The tallest point in Kansas, Mt. Sunflower. Someday, I hope to summit this peak.
- Prairie Dog Town, home of the “Largest Prairie Dog In The World”. To me part of driving on I-70 in Kansas is seeing all the signs for Prairie Dog Town.
- Dodge City and the Boot Hill Museum, home of boot hill, Matt Dillon, and Miss Kitty’s Place. One of my favorite Kansas memories is going into Miss Kitty’s Family Friendly, Long Branch Saloon, and placing my boot on the rail at the bar to order a root beer.
By the way, pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training on Valentines Day. That just seems so right.
NEVER KNOW WHAT YOU GOT TILL IT’S GONE
Happy Anniversary to Admirable Thoughts: Writings of Code Monkey. February 1, 2008, marked year three of this blog. I write a yearly review of the blog as a way to refresh our memories about why this blog exists on its anniversary. Also, I list stats about this blog that probably only I care about.
First, though, I am sorry about the delay in the annual state of the blog anniversary entry. I know I am a few days late with it. Life was just so crazy last week. I had lots of issues with computers, which I believe are evil. On top of that I had to go “recuse” my stranded parents who got stuck in the snow in Westcliffe, CO and then I had to get them back to their home near Rock River, WY. So my time was very limited for this annual entry.
As always, feel free to leave comments, email me or contact me with the contact form about what you love or hate about the blog, changes you would like to see, or how this blog has changed you life.
Reasons For The Blog:
I had a few reasons for starting this blog. One was because I figured it would be good to know how to setup blogs in case I had to do one for professional reasons since I do a lot of website work. Another reason for this blog was to help improve my writing and grammar skills.
The entries in the blog can be about anything that I feel inclined to write about. I don’t limit myself to anything since I am not an expert at anything so I might as write about everything. I am told from some readers that most of the stories feel like they are about baseball and mountains. I did write a lot more about baseball last year as the Rockies played longer than normal, so thus there was more baseball talk from me. However, mountains and baseball are big loves in my life that do not mind if I write about them. Thus, I write about them more than other things.
The blog was added on to my personal website. Hopefully, with the pictures, polls, and the blog, you can stay connected with me even if you don’t get to be around me that much or maybe you can learn about me if you have never met me. I hope the blog has been fun and useful to the readers. I enjoy it and as long as I enjoy the blog, I will keep it alive.
Titles:
After my first entry, I decided that once and in while, I would have a bullet point format of thoughts called Monkey Meditations. If the entry was not Monkey Meditations, the title of the entry would be a line from some song. Hopefully, it gives my blog a little bit of character to call my own.
There is a link that is in on the left side bar called Name That Title; so if anyone wanted to know what song the title was from, they could find out. Some lyrics get used for specific entry types and that is explained on the Name That Title page.
Stats:
- Entries:
Type Past Year Overall Entries 65 200 Monkey Meditations 10 29 The number of entries last year was 65 and 64 the year before that. The number of Monkey Meditations entries was 9 last year and 10 the year before that. So I guess I am pretty consistent in how much I write.
- Categories:
Type Past Year Overall Faith 4 25 Family 1 28 Friends 4 34 General 23 64 Hiking 12 27 Music 1 24 News 12 28 Sports 35 89 Some stories where in multiple categories.
- Entry Song Types:
Type Past Year Overall Country 30 71 Christian 12 59 Rock and/or Roll 2 10 Other 0 5 I do not include the special titles in this count.
- Comments:
Type Past Year Overall Number of Comments 119 244 Different People Who Left Comments 19 26 That you for the comments. It always makes me feel better. This year again, my friend Matt, left the most comments with 49.
- Spam:
Type Past Year Overall Attempts To Leave Spam 32,387 37,211 Wow, the spam has increased so much since last year. I am not sure why, but the programs to stop the spam have done a great done!
- Monkey Pen:
Last year the regular readers were given the name Monkey Pen. The name came from loyal Monkey Pen Members, Rick and Todd.Based on those signed up for the blog’s emails updates, people who have emailed me about the blog, those those leave comments, and those who use RSS readers to know when the site has a new story I believe there about 28 regular readers. So the Monkey Pen grew from last year!
Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule and reading this blog. I do feel privilege that you read it.
