Padres Draft Results!

The 2011 Draft has officially closed and in addition to first round draft pick Cory Spangenberg, drafted back in the June amateur draft, the Padres have signed three more of their top four picks. Joe Ross, a right-handed pitcher from Bishop O'Dowd High in Oakland CA was signed for $2.75 million. Michael Kelly, another right-handed pitcher from West Boca Raton (Fla) High,  was signed for $718k, and catcher Austin Hedges from Junipero Serra, CA was signed for $3 million. Ross is the younger brother of Oakland A's pitcher Tyson Ross and had a fastball that reached 96 mph in the spring. Kelly was 8-1 with a 1.89 ERA this past season and a fastball at around 94 mph. "He has a delivery that works," Padres assistant manager Jason McLeod said. Hedges was called by scouts the best defensive catcher in the draft.
What potential does 2012 hold with these three new athletes officially wearing a Padres uniform? Only time will tell!

Ludwick and Adams gone, Heath stays

With Sunday's game 1:05 start being only 5 minutes after the 1:00 trade deadline the air around Petco Park was thick with anticipation. The names on the chopping block were Ludwick, Bell, and Adams. The ones that got chopped: Adams and Ludwick. Ludwick was announced in the starting lineup and Adams was traded about twenty minutes of the game's start. To say Manager Jed Hoyer and the Padres trade team was cutting close is putting it mildly. Of Mike Adams and Heath Bell, Adams was still under club control for another year and a half, Bell is a free agent at the end of the season. If Bell were to leave as a free agent, the Padres would get two draft picks as compensation. So, were another team to acquire him it would essentially only be as a rental for the next two months, but Adams will be under the Rangers control for another year and a half. In exchange for Adams the Padres picked up two minor league pitchers; Robbie Erlin and Joe Wieland. Hoyer held a news conference almost immediately following the trade news and I was there for your inside scoop into the mindset of the manager.
"You hate to be in the position of the seller," Hoyer noted. "The goal is to win games but we just have not done enough of that, so we are the sellers this season. Our goal now is to create a championship organization, I don't think it's any secret that we are not going to the playoffs this year so we are going to strike deals that build talent base. With this ballpark you can never lose sight of the bullpen, that's why we went for the two young pitchers we did. We were very impressed with how polished they are."
"Our depth was tested this year, last year we were fortunate, we were more tried with injury this year. You want a core group but you also want to strengthen your farm system."
If there was one thing Hoyer was emphasizing it was the farm system and how important it is to the Padres to continue to build young talent.
Ludwick was also traded in the final moments before the deadline to the Pittsburgh Pirates for a player to be named later or cash compensation. Ludwick, unlike Adams who said, "I came in this morning prepared to be the closer. I honestly thought Heath would be moved. This is a shock," was prepared for his impending trade.
"I knew I was going to get traded," Ludwick said. "Jed (Hoyer's) been honest since day one, I have nothing bad to say about the club. You can take me to my grave on that."
Ludwick, no stranger to the trading game, this will be his seventh in eleven years in the league, while sad about leaving San Diego where "everything was great, we just didn't win," is excited about the prospect of being in playoff contention.
"I'm excited to for the chance to get to the play-offs," Ludwick said. "And the central area is a place where I'n familiar."

So let me ask you, with all these last minute deals...first of all, what do you think about trading Adams over Bell, and secondly, what do you think about the emphasis on young players as opposed to veterans who know the game?

In the Blink of A Trade

With the deadline fast approaching, trade talks seem to be the only talks in the dugout. Heath Bell, Ryan Ludwick, and Mike Adams are all candidates for a last minute trade, but no one is exempt. Bud Black discussed what would happen in the event of even today's starter Aaron Harang being traded within the next hour.
"In that hypothetical situation," Black stated." Anthony Bass would be the starting pitcher."
You just never know when that call could come, or who it could come for. Buddy himself was subject to just such a surprise trade. He was warming up during a game against the Toronto Blue Jays when his coach got the call that he no longer needed to warm up...he had been traded to the Blue Jays. From dugout to dugout in a matter of minutes. The intricacies of baseball pale in comparison to the unpredictability of baseball.

Speaking of unpredictability, Nick Hundley was out taking BP this afternoon. He showed up before the first group batted and ran the bases as well as threw to second a few times, with his throws appearing to be normal, if not just a hair lower than they normally are. He batted with the last group during BP and Buddy said he may very well be in a rehab assignment by early next week.

Bell's Question is No Longer "If" But "Who"?

Heath Bell is almost certainly getting traded from the Padres. After months and months of discussion the question is no longer "if" he will be traded, it is "who" will pick him up? Several teams are in the conversation, especially the Rangers and the Cardinals. But all you needed to do to get that information was turn on SportsCenter or go on MLB.com. It's no longer a secret. But how exactly does the Heater feel about all these rumors and no action? Or about leaving San Diego in general?
"I don't want all the money," Heath said. "I want to create a legacy, you know like Trevor Hoffman did? I want that, I don't care about the money at all."
Manager Bud Black, as opposed to discussing the actual placement or possibility of a trade, looked at the way Bell is handling the situation.
"I'd say he's handling it different than most," Black said. "Most players are guarded when they talk to the media, Heath is very open, it's in his nature and he's open publicly with his feelings."
While it is Jed Hoyer who is making all the phone calls and exploring all the options, Black is kept informed as far as who Hoyer is looking at acquiring or giving away.
And at this point the situation has come to feel like a Band-Aid that has been on too long. It just needs to be ripped off so Heath can adjust both himself and his family to the move as quickly and painlessly as possible. The only question now is, will the scar be in the shape of Texas or a Cardinal? Deadline's Sunday, the wait will be over soon!

Richard down...possibly out?

Clayton Richard went in for shoulder surgery today at around 2:30 pm, manager Bud Black casually mentioned at the end of his news conference before today's game between the Padres and the Rockies. Thus far, all Buddy knows is that it was an exploratory surgery and promised more details following tonight's game. However, the recovery time at best is 6-8 weeks...I'm no math major but even I know that 8 weeks is two months and that's the end of the season folks. No word as to what could happen in the off-season but it looks like, at least for 2011, Richard's shoulder has finished him off.

The Australian Cavalry

Left-handed pitcher Josh Spence has been called up from San Antonio to try and even out the Padres bullpen a bit. With Spence the Padres now have eleven right-handed pitchers at their disposal, including starters, and three left-handed pitchers. In an interview with Channel 4’s Jenny Cavner Spence said he was going to take vegemite out to the bullpen with him, and Buddy joked that he liked his accent. “He has a good head on his shoulders,” Black said. “He knows the game well, he has en efficient change-up, a good pick-off, he’s pitched well in Double A and we have a need for a left-handed pitcher.”

Before being called up to the Big Leagues Spence was 3-1 with a 1.71 ERA in 35 games (47.1 innings).

Spence was drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 25^th round of the 2008 MLB June Amateur Draft, the ANA in the 3^rd round of the 2009 MLB June Amateur Draft and the San Diego Padres in the 9^th round of the 2010 MLB June Amateur Draft.

Spence is not scheduled for any starts this homestand and is not listed as a reliever but is an active player on the 40-man roster. 

Headley's Hurt

Chase Headley did not start today due to aggravating his right shoulder during Wednesday’s 5-1 victory over the Boston Red Sox. Buddy Black said that his shoulder acted up in his last AB and he simply had not recovered enough in the off day to start today. The Padres are going to take it day by day but he is out of the lineup today.

Rizzomania!

New Padre Anthony Rizzo

21-year old Anthony Rizzo has made his way through the Padres tunnel for the first time and there were four television cameras there to watch him do it. If Rizzo thought his time to shine was not going to come until the first pitch, he thought wrong. But Rizzo handled the cameras that became his shadow like a 21^st year veteran as opposed to the first day rookie he actually is. Even the ribbing from teammates could not faze his calm persona.

“Hey Rizzo,” teammate Orlando Hudson called from the dugout while Rizzo was taking fielding practice at first base. “Baby they got all the cameras on you! When you move they move baby! After nine years you get over that, they don’t care about you after that!”

Rizzo just acknowledged Hudson’s teasing, his grin a mixture of gladness at being accepted as one of the guys but uncertainty at the heart behind the teasing. With Anthony Rizzo being listed in black and white on the starting roster, the game will decide if the kid if worth the hype.

Astros leave defeated! Padres take the series!

http://houston.cbslocal.com/2011/06/06/astros-leave-san-diego-with-3-game-losing-streak/

Padres Take Game 3

Game day coverage of game three on CBS Houston! Check it out!
http://houston.cbslocal.com/2011/06/05/astros-suffer-game-3-collapse-against-padres/

Don't Get Too Comfortable

Aaron Cunningham

Aaron Cunningham, Logan Forsythe, Blake Tekotte: three players who have seen the field for the San Diego Padres in recent games, but may not be here to stay. With Nick Hundley sent down to Triple A Tucson for the game in Las Vegas tonight, fluidity seems to be the theme of the Padres’ dugout. There are not many times in a sport, whether it be baseball, football, or basketball when you see players playing multiple positions at the professional level. The Padres have a plethora of athletes known for their versatility: the more versatile you are, the more valuable you may be. Jorge Cantu has been known to play first, third and shortstop. Kyle Phillips has used a catcher’s glove and a first baseman’s glove. But no one on the Padres’ bench should get comfortable.

“Once you’re here,” manager Bud Black said. “It doesn’t mean you’ll stay. You have to be a day in and day out player.”

Cunningham is the most recent newbie to be brought up and it is not his first time at the rodeo. Last year when he was brought up to the majors he had a .288 batting average from 132 at bats.

“He plays good defense,” Black said of Cunningham. “He’s a good runner and a line drive hitter with a lot of power.”

In Cunningham’s first start for the Padres last year he hit a grand slam over the center field wall off Blue Jays’ Brett Cecil. But even with a start as stellar as that, Cunningham did not stay on the Padres’ starting squad, or even 40-man roster for the entire 2010 season. Will he be able to stay long enough to unpack his bag this time? Stay tuned!

Astros-Padres Game 2

Game coverage of the second game of the San Diego Padres and Houston Astros series on CBS Houston!
http://houston.cbslocal.com/2011/06/04/astros-happ-lose-game-2-to-padres/

Headley Hits Away

Last night’s defeat to the Astros also brought Chase Headley the 12^th game of his consecutive hitting streak. Headley’s single to left field in the second off Bud Norris made his streak the longest Padres’ streak. And his 50 hits on the season is second only to Ryan Ludwick’s 52.

“His daily approach is consistent,” Black said from his perch in the dugout during the news conference. “He’s a tad more aggressive in the beginning of the count.”

At this point Black was interrupted by Mudcat Grant, Channel 4’s color commentator, who has emphasized several times throughout the season the full count Headley often seems to reach. “I’m going to buy Chase a shirt that says ‘CFC’ Count Full Count.”

With a shake of his head, Buddy continued, “He’s always taken a lot of pitches. In Little League he was taking a lot of pitches, in t-ball he was taking a lot of pitches.”

Injury Update

Catcher Nick Hundley took batting practice on the field at home for the first time since being placed on the DL on May 6^th. With a strained right oblique and antsy Hundley, that small bit of progress was extremely significant. Manager Bud Black said that Hundley will probably be in the lineup tomorrow at Triple A Tucson. After a month of consecutive missed games, a player’s endurance could be called into question. But not with Hundley.

“He has good actions,” said Black. “He has good arm strength, good rhythm, he’s a good worker. He’s a hard worker.”

Center fielder Cameron Maybin is also on the DL with knee inflammation, although there is no structural damage. Orlando Hudson caps off the list of starters on the DL with an injured groin.

Astros Take Game 1 From Padres

Check out the game story on CBS Houston!

http://houston.cbslocal.com/2011/06/03/astros-take-game-1-from-padres/

Oh The Pitchers You Choose

Mike Adams winding up

While the Padres have been lacking in run support, and wins, and hits, they have been excellent in their bullpen. The only proof you need of that, outside of the 3.46 ERA that places them fifth best in the National League and tenth in the Major Leagues, is the duel between Padres’ Mike Adams and Cardinals’ Albert Pujols during last night’s game. The battle between Adams and Pujols left the air crackling with electricity. It was a clutch out that kept the Padres within range of a win. With seven men eagerly waiting in the Padres bullpen, how does skipper Bud Black decide which one will be the best for a particular situation? I caught up with him today in the dugout and here’s what he said:

“I don’t want to say that there are loosely defined positions, but there are particular spots where each pitcher feels comfortable. Adams comes in usually in the eighth with either a lead or a tie, and that’s home or away. Gregerson and Leubke in the seventh and Bell in the ninth.”

So there you have it, straight from the GM himself, the key to utilizing all the potential in the Padres’ magnificent bullpen. 

Venable To San Antonio, Deduno DFA'd, and Tekotte in a Padres Uniform: What Happened?

This morning Will Venable was optioned to the AAA San Antonio Padres club. While fluidity in the roster is much more common in baseball than in most other sports, the move today was not exactly expected or simple. Because Venable was optioned to Tucson Bud Black brought up Blake Tekotte, a left-hander from Columbia, Missouri. It is Tecotte’s first callup of his career. In order to make room for Tecotte on the roster Black decided to designate pitcher Samuel Deduno for assignment. This means that the Padres have 10 days, from the date of designation, to return Deduno to the 40-man roster, or to trade, release, or outright him to the Minors. But, all is not lost for Deduno, since he was designated for assignment he was required to clear outright waivers. While he is on those waivers another team can buy him for the price of $20,000, which is the price of the outright waiver. The Padres also still have to pay the remaining salary to Deduno if he is not picked up by another team.

That being said, the atmosphere around the dugout this afternoon was a little heavier than normal. Sure, the players were still joking with each other and getting excited for the game, but there was a finality, a fear in the air that had not been there before any previous games. Black’s team meeting last night added to the air of replacement. On a team where there are no league-renowned names such as Adrian Gonzalez or David Eckstein anymore, anyone can be replaced, as Black proved last night.

When asked why Black chose to bring up Tekotte as opposed to Cunningham or another player he responded, “Blake is flexible. He can play all the outfield positions. He’s what we need at this point. He fits the bill and works well as a left-handed batter.”

Black, while dancing around the topics discussed at the team meeting with more grace than a ballerina, was very explicit about what they look for when they are looking at which player to bring up to the majors.

“It is performance based,” Black stated. “What can they add to the team and what do we need at the time.”

According to Black, Tekotte fits the bill. With no appearance in tonight’s 3-1 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals, the mysterious Blake has yet to prove he was worth the trade. But tomorrow is another day, and one look at the child-like grin that was plastered on Tekotte’s face all throughout batting practice assured you that he has every intention of staying right where he is. 

Just An Ocean Away

What began as a national pastime has become an international game. Teams around the league are widening their focus to include overseas prospects. And as more and more of these foreign development programs discover untapped potential in international talent, international leagues are becoming more credible. The Padres have long been scouring foreign lands for their talent and before Friday’s game one of the greatest Padres’ Japanese talents returned to his stadium. Akinori Otsuka was a Padres’ relief pitcher from 2003 to 2006 before being traded to the Texas Rangers, along with pitcher Adam Eaton, and minor league catcher Billy Killian, for Chris Young, Adrian Gonzalez (now having an All-Star season with the Boston Red Sox after his trade during the past off-season), and outfielder Terrmel Sledge.

Trevor Hoffman 1995 Signature Card

Japanese Baseball Card Menko 1976

Otsuka was born in Chiba, Japan and played in the Japanese League with the Chunichi Dragons before his career to the US. Before the game I got a chance to catch up with Aki and discuss a pillar of any baseball fan’s memorabilia: the baseball card. In Japan the cards are completely different than the ones found here in the US. The Japanese cards are cartoonish, depicting caricatures of the players as opposed to the real still-life photos found in American cards. And while American cards are always found in the typical rectangular shape, Japanese cards vary in shape and size. Some cards came looking like masks with holes punched out for eyes, some were circular, and some were the size of a stick of gum. But one thing that transcends the differences across the ocean is the magnetic draw of the cards for children of all ages. Aki remembers going to the store every single day after school and buying a bag of what would be equivalent to potato chips here in the US, for thirty cents and excitedly opening it to see what card would be inside.

“My favorite card to get was Sadaharu Oh,” Otsuka tells me with a grin. “He had 868 homeruns and he was the general manager of the 2006 Baseball World Classic Team, where I was the closer.”

When I asked him what it was like to work under the man he had admired so much throughout his young life, his broken English turned into the star-struck speech of every child with a hero.

“It was everything I could imagine. When he came out of the tunnel and I was right there, it was just…” his sparkling eyes and Cheshire grin said more than words ever could.

Duck and Cover

During Thursday’s game against the Seattle Mariners, Padres shortstop Jason Bartlett took a ground ball and in an attempt to do his usual side arm flip for the out at first he clipped the left hand of fellow shortstop Brendan Ryan. According to the Major League Baseball Official Rules Section 7.09 (e)

“If, in the judgment of the umpire, a base runner willfully and deliberately interferes with a batted ball or a fielder in the act of fielding a batted ball with the obvious intent to break up a double play, the ball is dead. The umpire shall call the runner out for interference and also call out the batter-runner because of the action of his teammate. In no event may bases be run or runs scored because of such action by a runner.”

Throughout the 60s and 70s is was fairly common for a shortstop or second baseman to actually aim for a runner who was coming in to a slide too high trying to break up a double play. Bob Stanton, a Channel 4 Padres reporter, noted that once you got hit with a ball coming at you that fast you thought twice about sliding in high and late. Padres’ manager Buddy Black noted the next day, that there was no history between Bartlett and Ryan, it probably just happened. After the play was over the two shook it off. Ryan was fine, although a trainer did come out to inspect his left hand, and Bartlett continued on as the game ended 1-0 in the Pads favor. And just in case you were not sure that professional baseball players are really just kids who get to play the sport they love and call it work, the next day the team was already making light of the situation. During batting practice Bartlett and Jorge Cantu were fielding practice grounders at second base. In between turn Bartlett picked up the ball and wheeled towards Cantu, motioning as if he was going to take his head off with his point blank throw. Cantu ducked quickly in mock fright, but Bartlett with a smile and a laugh allowed the ball to fall harmlessly to the ground. Two grown-up boys just teasing each other and expressing their love of the game. 

Homestand #2

So my second homestand with the Padres is officially over. The list of words to describe it: endless. Exhausting, I am working on about three hours of sleep a night and barely getting any homework done (hence the reason this blog is late), exhilarating, the joy and excitement that comes from being around people who have the same passions I do never ceases to make the sleepless nights worth it, confusing, it is hard to find my place among the broadcasting and Channel 4 team because I am only the intern, but I feel like I'm where I belong so my ultimate expendability is hard to balance, lesson-filled, not a game goes by where I do not learn something new from someone else, whether it be Jen, the sideline and post-game girl, John the post-game show guy, Annie, the UT rep, or Mike, the stats guy, and not last, but last for the sake of this blog, memorable. The memories I have made, the connections I have forged, and the lessons I have learned will stay with me the rest of my life and someday when I have my own intern I will share these experiences with them and can only hope I have half as much knowledge to pass on to them as I have learned in the last month. 140 games to go!

Here I Am

Today was my second official day of working with Dick Enberg and the San Diego Padres. There is no better way to describe my feelings except; it felt like coming home. I walked into the stadium yesterday a nervous wreck, so unsure of what to expect, unconfident in what I had prepared, and acutely aware of how much I hated wearing heels. When I walked into the press box Mud's aka Mark Grant, Dick's color commentator, easy smile and embracing hug put me right at ease. The stage manager, but really the stage mom, Sheila began talking to me as if we were old friends, and Dick, well he looked up from his score sheet with a calm look and assuring smile so contrary to the madness of opening day happening all around us. And once those first 30 seconds were over, I was in my element. I made my way around the press level, being introduced to anyone and everyone I may need or want throughout the season. Most of whom I don't remember their names, but all I remember by their smiles. That's one of my favorite parts about my profession; we are trained to communicate, to understand body language and facial expressions and the affect they have on the people we come in contact with, and so everyone, at least at first, greets you with a welcoming smile like they had known you all their life. Once the game began and I sat in the special chair designated just for me behind the team of Mud and Dick, high above home plate, the best seat in the house, I felt this inexpressible joy bubbling up inside me. With the scent of cracker jacks, the sound of cracking bats, whizzing baseballs, and excited fans filled the air, there was a light in my heart that only God could have put there.

Salt + Water

The rain rain rain came down down down
It's raining here at PLNU. As I type this the soft pattering of droplets against my window I am reminded of a saying I heard not to long ago. "The cure for anything is a mixture of salt and water- sweat, tears, or the sea." But as wave after wave of destruction hits the coast of Japan, the very waves that offer me such calm each day when I glance to the west I wonder if salt and water is not only a cure, but also a curse.
In rushing, rising riv'lets
What many people don't know is that a tsunami is actually not one huge wave, it is a series of waves that hit one after the other. How many times has the phrase "trouble comes in threes" been uttered? For Japan, it's true. The tsunami that caused so much destruction there, was a spectacle here. People grabbed their boards, jumped in their cars and headed to the coast, video cameras in tow hoping to catch their slice of the action. The morning after the tsunami my dad woke up and made his coffee as he does every morning. He sat down at the kitchen table, cereal on one side, coffee on the other, and computer in the middle. His home page is Surfline. As soon as he opened his web browser for the surf report his coffee and cereal were forgotten, found soggy by my mom and I hours later. He sprinted to the garage, grabbed his board and sped to the beach ready for what he hoped would be an awesome aftermath. How awful is that we find sport in their pain?
Til the river crept out of it's bed
In San Diego, the tsunami caused a high tide to occur in a matter of minutes that would normally take several hours. In Japan, the ocean left it's place in a much more violent and aggressive manner. Here, the ocean approached San Diego gently, caressing it awake with all the nurture of a mother easing their slumbering child into the new day. In Japan, the alarm went off with all the abruptness and obnoxiousness of a car alarm. Japan was slapped awake by frothy wave upon frothy wave. There was no easing Japan into the destruction that was about to happen.
And crept right into Piglet's
Did the waves really creep into Japan's coast. It seemed more like a charge from here.
Poor Piglet he was frightened
We were scared here when some boats came umoored in San Diego Harbor. Can you imagine the fright of having an entire building being swept out from under you? I can't.

The Stranger at the Game

On Wednesday night, I was waiting in the gym for my intramural basketball game to begin. I was nervous, as I always am when about to partake in an activity I know I am awful at. I wasn't exactly sure of what my team name was, or who exactly was on my team. I looked around and there was a girl, who appeared to have no more idea what to do with herself than I did. We drew towards each other, like moths to a flame, until finally we were close enough that I could ask her her name.
As it turned out Kara was there to watch her RA play, and her RA was on my team. As we talked she fiddled with her homemade sign made of washable Crayola marker, looking to her friend who had just arrived, clearly wanting out of the conversation she had just found herself in with me. I asked her why she came to the basketball game, and she told me her RA had given their hall the guilt trip about coming to watch her play. But she said it with a twinkle in her eye, the kind you get when you are outwardly bashing someone or something, but the care you have for them sparkles through the hazy sarcasm. She loves that about Loma, the fact that people will encourage each other and be there for each other. When I asked her if that was all she loved about Point Loma she responded that there were actually three reasons she chose PLNU. It is by the beach, she loves the Christian atmosphere, and there are friendly people. I thought that was interesting because it was those very things that drew me to this school. But once I was here, I initially had a hard time finding my place among the Christian atmosphere I had so looked forward to joining. When I asked her if it was the same way, she told me that she actually loved it so far. She told me that if she was going through something, all she had to do was go down her hall to find someone who was there for her and had probably gone through the same thing and could give her the encouragement she needed.
When the whistle blew for my game to begin, we shared a smile, the kind that implied we had just become the wave-across-caf-lane kind of friends. Once of us having found their place, and the other, still searching.

And Then There Was Me

John Lynch was born in Illinois but went to Torrey Pines High School, here in San Diego. After graduating from high school, he attended Stanford University where he excelled in football and baseball. In 1992 he was drafted in the second round as a pitcher by the Florida Marlins for their minor league teams. He played in the minors for two years, but in 1993 he was drafted in third round of the NFL Draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Lynch won a Super Bowl ring with the Bucs in 2002 and also became the first player to wear a microphone during the Super Bowl. After 11 years with the Bucs, he signed as a free agent with the Denver Broncos, playing with them for another four seasons. He became dissatisfied with the amount of playing time he was receiving at the Broncos and told the press that that was the real reason for his release. Prior to the 2008 season he agreed to a 1-year deal with the New England Patriots but was released from the deal before the season began, and so he announced his retirement on November 17, 2008. 6 days later he began working with NFL On Fox as a color commentator and analyst. This past Tuesday, the San Diego Hall of Champions held the 65th Annual Salute to the Champions Banquet at the Town and Country Hotel. John Lynch was being inducted into the Breitbard Hall of Fame. After a gracious speech and thunderous applause the evening drew to a close. Almost all of the over 500 attendees glided their way to the parking lot, but I stayed behind. I wanted the chance to meet some of the men I had grown up loving, with unsure steps I made my way to the front of the magnificent dinner hall. Lynch was talking to several people, one of whom was old and wore a gray bedazzled cowboy hat to match his gray tuxedo, another was Lincoln Kennedy, another inductee, and then there was me.

It was just another walk to the cafeteria; we do it every single day, usually twice a day, and we always go together. But today was one of those days where the moods of the two best friends were approaching delirious quicker than the Steelers are approaching a Super Bowl loss. We were both experiencing a combination of the myriad of circumstances and assignments that encompass the life of a college student. If we had been alone, we would have quietly bottled up our insanity until we could sleep it off. But since we were together, we fed off each other's delirium like small children clamoring for an adult's attention. Each comment had to be built upon. The caf chose that night to serve some decorative greenery on top of the rice. The greenery was completely pointless, only there to make the questionable substance under it appear slightly more pleasing to the palette than the leftovers of yesterday's meatloaf. The shrub became the unsuspecting subject of our deranged comments.
"This looks like something out of Bambi's forest," my best friend Sally commented disgustedly.
"How dare they take a shrub from Bambi's home!" I chimed in.
From there it became a volley of snappy remarks, going back and forth faster than Venus and Serena in Wimbledon and escalating as quickly as a tea kettle once it starts whistling.
"Yeah, wasn't it enough they killed his mom?!"
"And on our plate there's only one, imagine how many plates of this they will serve, they've taken his whole forest!"
"So now he's without a mom and a home!"
"We should write a letter."
"I bet it was the hunter."
So yes, the caf is personally responsible for all of Bambi's childhood pain and misery, in case you were wondering.

A Day Like Any Other

It was today, but it was really any day. Two friends sat laughing and sharing life in an unspeakably beautiful and unique way. It was one of those friendships where rarely were words needed, and when they chose to use them it was as if the song of their soul was the same, merely with different melodies. This particular morning they were talking about The Bachelor, the show they both hate to love but are as caught in its’ spell as if it was a drug. A man walked past the doorway, he was a mutual acquaintance, a friend if we are using a generous term, and normally he would have walked by with a polite wave and that would be all. Life is normal. But today, today was different; this time he turned around. And with the simple pivot of his foot, everything had changed. With each step he took back towards them her heart raced at the thought that maybe today would finally be the day when all her insecurities, her fears, could fade as quickly as a dream leaves the mind of the awakened with a single look; one of acceptance.