Monthly Archives: December 2013

A blog break

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I haven’t posted since I predicted the demise of the Rams versus the Saints.

Though they proved me wrong in that game, they still finished the season below .500 and you can blame it on the fact that Sam the Ram got knocked out for half the season. But in reality, they probably would have ended up in about the same spot had he been playing instead of growing a beard on the sidelines.

Since that time, I’ve been totally wrapped up in work and by the time I’m home for the day, my creative juices haven’t exactly been flowing.

No one has complained about my lack of posting.

In fact, if I were to never post a blog again, I don’t think anyone would be too horribly upset.

Regular readers of this might even feel a bit relieved, knowing that the email alerts that there’s something new on BloodLines Creative would now be a thing of the past.

It would be one less intrusion on your life you’d have to deal with.

Sorry, that’s not going to happen.

I intend to keep plowing ahead and every once in a while I hope to actually post something that makes you think twice or at least brings a smile to your face or maybe even a tear to your eye.

I’ve never gone the emotional route with these posts but I know those words are in me when I care deeply about something.

And there’s still plenty to say.

2014 will be the 250th anniversary of St. Louis. It will be the 150th anniversary of McCarthy. Those two aren’t necessarily connected but there are a lot of commonalities that I may bring out in a future musing.

So enjoy the last few hours of 2013 and may you truly enjoy a Happy New Year.

This is going to be an interesting year, I’m sure of it.

How do I know?

Because every year, is an interesting one.

Robert F. Kennedy was quoted as saying there’s a Chinese curse which says, “May he live in interesting times. Like it or not, we live in interesting times.”

The Chinese deny the curse originated from Confucius or anyone else from China.

But Robert was correct in one fact.

We live in interesting times.

And like it or not, they get more interesting all the time.

 

 

Take a stand, Stan

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The Rams will not make the playoffs this year. Again.

They won’t have a winning season. Again.

They’ll be lucky to win one more game of their three remaining matchups and will probably finish in the bottom third of the NFL standings. Again.

So what’s Stan Kroenke supposed to do with this mess? He didn’t cause it, did he?

He made what almost every media person said was a great coaching hire by bringing in Jeff Fisher – who before joining the Rams had a winning percentage slightly above .500 and now enjoys one that is slightly below.

I’m not upset with Coach Fisher and from everything I’ve read, neither is his team.

It’s not Jeff’s fault that Sam Bradford shredded his knee. Sam wasn’t all that mobile to begin with and unlike many who have had Tommy John surgery, I don’t expect him to find new-found mobility or ability when he returns next season. The Rams have a quarterback problem. Again.

It’s not Les Snead’s fault that Tavon Austin hasn’t quite had the breakout year we were all hoping for. Tavon had that one game with the punt return, the end-around and a few great grabs and he’s had a few great returns called back because of penalties which the Rams seem able to accumulate faster than points. But it’s hard to be a major flash when you’re running a guy who weighs about half of what a defensive lineman weighs up the middle. He’ll get better next year, I’m sure.

It can’t be Brian Shottenheimer’s fault that the offense hasn’t quite jelled. We lost our QB. Now we’ve lost our center. We shifted to a power running game without having a power running back. And all these games are now beginning to take their toll on Zac Stacy who has taken the place of Daryl Richardson who took the place of Steven Jackson who has had his own problems down in Atlanta.

It can’t be the fault of the Rams receiving corps, either. We didn’t really have a shining star to begin the season and though Pettis, Quick, Cook, Bailey and Kendricks have had their share of drops, who can blame them when Sam was rushing his throws and now Kellen is still trying to find his groove?

Maybe it’s the fans fault. I’ve been to three Rams games so far this year and will be at the upcoming debacle against the Saints this Sunday. Our seats are in the end zone and the majority of games we have been surrounded by fans of whatever opponent the Rams were facing. Upper tier seats generally show their lovely purple colors because no one is sitting in them. It’s hard to fill a stadium when your team has one of the lowest winning percentages in the NFL the last 10 years and there’s really no reason to be optimistic that things are going to get better any time soon.

No, it’s not the Rams fans fault.

I’m going to place all the blame on the Invisible Man.

Just once, it would be nice if Stan Kroenke would emerge from his mansion in Columbia, Missouri, or one of his two mansions in Colorado or one of his other mansions in Malibu Beach or his 124,000 acre ranch in Montana or his Steamboat Springs duplex or whatever dwelling he may have in London when he’s watching his Arsenal team in action and come out and say, “Hey, St. Louis, I’m committed to the Rams being here and we’re going to turn this organization into something that would make the Rooney family jealous in Pittsburgh and create a dynasty where season tickets get passed on in wills like in Green Bay.”

But that’s probably not happening. We’re stuck with one of the richest men in the world as an owner who has other priorities and who, if he had the chance, would probably move the Rams back to L.A.

But the NFL has basically reserved that spot for an expansion team and moving across the pond to London-town is still a concept that is far, far away.

So the Rams are going nowhere, playing in a second-tier stadium with a lease that’s about to expire. The fan base is fed up with losing and afraid to really support a team led by an owner who never shows up for games or comments on the state of the team or gives any indication that he has any intention whatsoever of keeping the team here.

It’s a big, sad, mess of a football franchise.

Please, Stan, take a stand.

Tell St. Louis your vision for the Rams. Let us know where you stand and maybe that might help right the ship.

That would be the right thing to do.

But I’m not holding my breath.

 

 

 

Shooting down the drone delivery idea

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The Federal Aviation Administration has got some work to do with the news of Amazon and UPS pursuing the use of drones to deliver packages.

Soon, the air above us may be filled with fast flying drones, clutching 2-6 pound packages in their talons, ready to drop in and make a special delivery right to your doorstep.

Of course, there are still a few kinks to work out. According to Colin Guinn, the North American CEO for the drone manufacturer DJI, “What we need in terms of tech is improved object detection and avoidance, because GPS coordinates alone won’t cut it if you’ve got a car or some kids in the driveway.” (ttp://www.theverge.com/2013/12/3/5169878/ups-is-researching-its-own-delivery-drones-to-compete-with-amazons)

That would be something to see. Just imagine a drone zooming in on your house ready to deliver the special deal you got on Amazon when instead it crashes head on to a Fed Ex driver who’s dropping off a package you had shipped overnight.

It could happen.

In fact, all kinds of chaos could ensue if suddenly we had hundreds, maybe even thousands of these drones flying around our communities, crashing into each other or flocks of migrating birds.

What would really be fun would be drone target shooting. You could request next day delivery by drone and then build your own backyard blind where you could wait for the approaching drone and literally blow it out of the sky. What fun!

I wonder if our evening newscasts might soon be filled with drone incidents. Crashes in the sky. On the ground. Pets maimed. Storms blowing the drones way off track so their deliveries end up in cornfields miles from their intended target.

Of course, this is why companies have research and development departments.

I’m sure all of these scenarios have been discussed by the fine folks at Amazon and UPS and you know if they’re in on it, FedEx is working fast and furious on the concept as well.

I’m not saying drone delivery won’t work. In the future, it probably will. It’s just that right now, it seems a little H.G. Wells-like.

That’s okay.

Bring on the future.

If robots can vacuum our floors we might as well have drones deliver the goods.

I no longer miss the Big 12

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A year ago, I was lamenting the Missouri Tigers move to the SEC Conference.

I thought it was all about the money. Well, perhaps it was and is and always will be.

Still, I was bummed that Mizzou had lost the chance to go up against Nebraska and Oklahoma in football and our chief rival in basketball was now a thing of the past.

So much for the past.

Nebraska looks lost in the Big 10. Oklahoma is still doing its thing in the Big 12 but the Big 12 no longer seems relevant. Baylor is the big power now. Baylor?

My, how times have changed.

My entire day yesterday was structured around SEC football. Leaf raking in the morning. A much needed haircut followed by a good workout so I could justify parking my butt on the couch for seven consecutive hours and I would have to say, those may have been the best seven hours of TV viewing time I have seen in a long, long time.

The Auburn-Alabama game was fun to watch as an outsider. I really had no hopes at all for Auburn but Alabama didn’t seem to have their ‘A’ game and when Auburn scored to tie the game with less than 30 seconds left, I was wondering if maybe, just maybe, we might see a little magic in the old Iron Bowl.

I actually was thinking it would be better if Alabama won followed by a Tigers victory so that we could potentially knock off #1 next weekend but that seemed like a pretty tall order to begin with.

I’ve watched Alabama play several games as well as the Tigers (whenever and wherever I could find them on whatever weird cable channel they happened to be on at the time). I really didn’t think Mizzou matched up very well against them.

Now, I don’t have to worry about that thanks to the most stunning end to a college football game I have ever seen. It really couldn’t have been written any better than that ending. And I must admit, I was happy to see things backfire on Nick Saban. He’s a great football coach but it seems like he almost has too many toys at his disposal. Seeing the miracle ending of the Auburn game was the magic of what college football is all about. And by the time the interviews were done and the Auburn fans were still screaming on the field, it was time to switch over to MU-Texas A&M and see what we could do against Johnny Football.

I thought Mizzou would win. But in my heart, I was waiting to be stabbed, waiting for the interception or long TD pass or 5th down play that would send Mizzou to a bowl game that would be good, but not great.

Because it seems that’s what Mizzou has always done.

But the Tigers held tight on defense and Henry Josey took his restructured knee and turned this Doubting Thomas into a believer.

Now Mizzou, in just its second year in the SEC, is a Conference Champion with the chance to win it all this Saturday. This is supposed to be the best football conference in America and we’re playing in the Championship Game!

What?

How?

The Tigers?

Relevant?

This is insane.

And it is oh, so enjoyable.

Adios, Big 12. I no longer miss you.

The Tigers have much better things to do now.

This is a week to be savored and I’m looking forward to Saturday.

Go Tigers!