Kevin's 2nd Blog Entry - Cue the Harp, it's Christmas!

The terrible cold winter season has stalled hot-stove talks for most of the major league free agency period. The Yankees took the lead by signing anyone and everyone they could get their hands on, and showed little to no concern as to what it would cost. It seems that the treacherous winter weather has few if any people thinking about baseball at the moment. All we can do is look at the radar and attempt to prepare for our third major winter storm in as many weeks. It is tough to think about baseball with a thick 2-3 foot layer of snow over everything, but come spring it will hopefully give way to beautiful green grass and warm days!

Besides all of the white stuff, the terribly cold temperatures, and the havoc that is created on the roadways, this is one of the most wonderful times of the year, or at least that is what most people say. With numerous holiday parties, hot cocoa, warm egg nog, and giving/getting gifts, it’s truly a great time once you get past the weather. From ugly Christmas sweater parties, (which have become an annual tradition for college kids) to hot apple cider spiced with rum, the holiday season always has something fun and entertaining to offer.

It is truly a joyous time of the year as you receive gifts and presents from friends and family, attacking presents like you’re rounding third base and heading for home. Once you start to unwrap the first present there is no stopping; sure coach might be waving you home but your parents seem to be always holding you up. They are telling you to slow down and let other people open a present or too. It is tough to do, but is usually one of the most gratifying things as you are able to see the joy and pleasure others have when opening presents. That is truly the best part of the holiday season; the giving of gifts. Sure you might get a baseball glove or bat, but it is what you give that truly makes it a wonderful experience. A simple gift or a card can go a long way in brightening another individual’s day, week, or holiday season.

The joy and pleasure that you can give to another individual is one of the best things, if not the best thing about the holiday season. Everyone loves receiving gifts but there is nothing that can match the power of giving a gift. The receiver of the gift might not think it is the greatest thing in the world but the simple idea of you thinking of another individual and giving them a gift should mean a lot to that person. Oftentimes it is the thought and effort that counts, not a high-priced tag.

As I have grown older and experienced numerous Christmases with family, friends, and other individuals I have learned that the true joy is not in what you receive but in what you are able to give!

I’d like to quickly praise another Packers collapse and a wonderful win by the Chicago Bears in last night's game. The game was not pretty by any means, as Kyle Orton threw some perfect passes to Charles Woodson and Nick Collins (Packer Pro Bowl DB’s). However, once the Bears remembered that Matt Forte was on their team, and leads the team in receptions and rushing yards, they started to involve him more and he helped create a multiple (more then a 3-and-out) play drive for the Bears which they eventually ended up scoring on and tying the game with. The biggest controversy in last night’s game according to my roommate, Mallards Merchandise King Nick Staehler, was the coin toss in overtime. I thought he was going to have a heart attack as he was wildly complaining about the toss, how it should have been re-flipped, that the Bears were some how cheating and that since it hit Urlacher in the helmet it completely changed the outcome of whether it was going to be a heads or a tails. . . I just sat there and laughed, trying to explain to him that he was off his rocker because Urlacher did not intentionally hit the coin and therefore did not intentionally alter whether it was going to land heads or tails. I told him that the only reason he was freaking out about it was because they (the Packers) lost the toss (which I probably would have done if the Bears lost) but it was a random toss with a random hit off of a player’s helmet and randomly landed on the ground.

The coin toss debacle was a great laugh for me and my other roommates, however the most impressive thing which I think both Bears and Packers fans can agree on is the long snap catching ability of Bear’s punter, holder, and former MVP, Brad Maynard. He was catching long snaps one-handed and placing them perfectly on the ground during a sideline warm-up. Now that is an amazing display of skill by one of the team’s best players . . . now only if we could get him to work on his passing.

Side-note: Duck Blind Princess, the answer is yes and I look forward to seeing you next summer out on the deck!

I hope everyone has a great Holiday Season, and a very happy New Year!

Kevin's First Blogtastic Entry - It’s Always Summer

If you are a regular reader of our blog then you probably already know a lot about me, my mullet hair style (which might be coming back in style, you never know), and my inability to jump while playing basketball. I am extremely fortunate that my co-workers like me enough to include me in their blogs and even devote sections of their blogs to my hair. I am truly surprised that they have no choice but to highlight some of my other great features and characteristics; however, I feel that they are saving them for future blogs.

My plan was to focus this week’s blog on the Bears crushing victory over the Packers… but as all of America saw, my beloved Chicago Bears forgot to show up in Green Bay and got badly embarrassed. I was lucky enough to be vacationing in Knoxville, Tennessee so I did not have to receive flack from all my Packer fan roommates during the game. It was a slap in the face when Fox took the game off the air, stating that it was no longer “competitive” with about 3 minutes left in the third quarter. However, halfway through this week I lucked out, as the Cubbies were able to sign and secure another great starting pitcher giving them the best rotation in the NL Central! Yep, the gentleman who Cubs fans used to refer to as Dumpster (during his time as a reliever), is now a star starting pitcher and is locked up with the Cubbies for another 4 years.

Instead I will give you a view into my little world here at the Mallards office and my cave as some of my coworkers like to call it. I am fortunate to have one of the few cubes which does not have a window for natural light, and my cubicle walls block most of the light from our ceiling lamps. However, I am graced with some wonderful pictures which I cherish. The first one, which was a gift from David Boyer (the Concessions MGR) to the previous resident who had this cubicle is a picture frame filled with about 8 different pictures of what it would look like if this cube had a window. The frame is only 12x10 inches but it is a very accurate representation of what is on the other side of the wall. The key is the combination of the 8 different pictures to create one big picture. They are so nicely put together that I often wonder if the creator was a 3 year old or drunk. It is the thought that matters though, and for that reason it is truly a wonderful gift and a Mallards front office staple.

The next picture is a flyover from 2007, taking up most of the wall, this is a good substitute for a window. It is also nice to look at the ballpark and see how things have changed over the past couple of years, and envision the new improvements which we are going to create at the ballpark. The best thing about my cubicle, it is always summer because there is never any snow covering my view of the ballpark. The wildcard and last picture which I have on my desk is a photo of John Fitzgerald Kennedy. I get the most questions about this photograph, as everyone always wonders why I have the picture, but I like to keep people guessing.

The pride and joy of my cubicle though, is the background on my computer, a large Chicago Bears logo which every Packer fan gets to look at in disgust everyday. Some of you might be like my fellow coworkers, sporting pictures of Brewers players, a family photo, or even a hot babe, but I prefer a peaceful orange and navy blue growling Bears head. The best part about my background is when I return back to the office from meetings. For some reason it always seems that the background has mysteriously changed to a gigantic Packers or Brewers logo, multiple pictures of myself with a mustache and mullet (which is always funny), or to a random fan/Mallards photo which was taken years ago and recently resurfaced on someone’s computer. It is always a nice treat when returning to the office to see what has been done to your desk, computer, or chair… but we can get into those glorious details in the future and some of the other fun games that go on here in the office. Note to readers: anything can be used as a projectile, not just baseballs in this office.

Well loyal readers, have a great rest of the week and a wonderful weekend.

(I'm also proud to note that our curling team (Team Ice Ducks) comprised of myself, Jerrad, John, and Steven Stewart won our first match last night! A big shout out to Steven's dad for giving us much-needed pointers beforehand! If you're ever bored and need a good laugh you can catch us at the Arlington Curling Club every Wednesday night.)