Murphy's Law

A funny thing happened after washing the car... it rained! Doesn't that figure? Rain at the tail end of June is a rarity in Southern California. Sure it only spit a little on the windshield... but at least it was rain.

My 2004 Scion xA... What-a-car

What a nice surprise this little car has turned out to be. I have now owned it for six years (Bought in July 2003) and mine was one of the first sold in Southern California... it hit the rest of the USA in 2004. Now it's finally time for a tuneup. I took it down to Midas to get a new set of brakes (second time they are being replaced- first tires and brakes were at 44,000--- I had new tires put on a month ago).

Today I also added 4 new sparkplugs (tuneup), a new battery and two belts. Seems like the old steed is staying pretty strong. I look forward to some more good driving and taking it past 100,000 miles soon. Getting 31 mpg in the city and 38 mpg on the highway... take that Big Oil!

The only other cars we have taken over 100,000 were our 1996 Ford Escort Wagon (a great car) and Gary's 1996 Honda Civic- which is still running strong.

Odometer reads: 88,966.

Bad Things Happen in Threes.

Michael Jackson (born August 29, 1958 in Gary, IN – died June 25, 2009 in Los Angeles, CA) American Pop singer.


Farrah Fawcett (born February 2, 1947in Corpus Christi, TX– died June 25, 2009 in Santa Monica, CA) American Actress.

Ed McMahon (born March 6, 1923 in Detroit, MI– died June 23, 2009 in Los Angeles, CA) American comedian.

Ten Daily Things

Ten Small Things That Can Make a Difference:

1- Take a walk. Even better if you walk to a market or store and save a car trip. Good for your health, good way to meet neighbors or make friends and good for your mental health and well being. Google "benefits of a daily walk".

2- Don't litter AND pick up three pieces of trash- every day. Good for your city and good for the environment. Be responsible and help clean up the mess by doing your part.

3- Listen to music every day. Learn to play an instrument or sing. Good for your mental sharpness and well being. Even a harmonica or singing in the shower counts. "Sing to the Lord a joyful song".

4- Develop a skill or hobby. This can be fun and add joy to your life. Even better if it doesn't cost much or it's art you can sell or give away as gifts.

5- Recycle, Re-use, Re-gift, Donate. Try not to throw things away into a landfill if someone else can use it. Garage sale, swap meet, free cycle, salvation army, thrift shops.

6. Shop locally and patronize at least one local merchant. By keeping money in your community insures local employment and keep businesses viable.

7. Drive less. Consciously decide to limit your car travel by grouping your trips. Example: instead of making a trip today to drop off dry cleaning, combine it with a trip to the post office and buying milk tomorrow. Get smart with your car trips. Good for your wallet, good for the air, good for the long haul of our country.

8. Get some culture. Visit a museum or zoo. Attend a play, music festival or symphony. Opera anyone? Expand your world view and mind... even better if they are local within your city.

9. Volunteer and support a charity or "cause". It could be a soup kitchen, neighborhood group, local food drive, walking in a cancer walk, an old age home, boy scouts. Join an organization to help out. Get out of the house, unplug, turn off the tube. Explore the possibilities.

10. Attend worship services. Don't let God take a backseat in your life. America was founded in 1776 on Judeo-Christian values, principles and beliefs... (read the Declaration of Independence and Constitution) ... so don't let society and our government push God out of your life.

These are all things that are good for you, good for others or good for the environment. It doesn't take lots of money or time. Small things can add up to make big differences.

Welcome to the Periodic Table--- Element 112

Although it doesn't have an "official name" Element 112 has been discovered. Ununbium... (which means 112 in latin?) it is a heavy metal that has a lifespan of about 30 seconds. How about calling it Matthewmium?

Ununbium (pronounced /juːˈnʌnbiəm/;^[1] officially, it is a temporary IUPAC systematic element name for a chemical element in the periodic table that has the temporary symbol Uub and the atomic number 112.

Element 112 is the latest superheavy element to be officially recognised by IUPAC (see Official discovery). The most stable isotope discovered to date is ²⁸⁵112 with a half-life of ~30 s. In total, about 75 atoms of ununbium have been detected using various nuclear reactions.^[3] An unconfirmed isotope, ^285b112, has a possible half-life of ~9 minutes, and would be one of the longest-lived superheavy isotopes known to date.

Recent experiments strongly suggest that element 112 behaves as a typical member of group 12, demonstrating properties consistent with a volatile metal.

-From the Wikipedia

Take a Flying Leap...

I wouldn't jump out of a plane... not at 18, 25 or 40 and certainly not at 85 like President George Herbert Walker Bush did recently. Bush has gone skydiving for his 75th and 80th birthdays as well and expects to do the same when he turns 90. Bush jumped from 10,500 feet and is pictured here traveling over 100 mph in freefall. He is tandem jumping with Mike Elliott of the Army's Golden Knights.

Bush has jumped out of a plane seven times. His first was when his Navy plane was shot down during World War II over the Pacific Ocean in 1944. He bailed out at 1,500 feet after a bombing mission but the rest of his crew didn't make it.

Truly--- George Bush I is a man's man.

I wonder what I will do to celebrate my 50th birthday this year? Certainly nothing as dramatic as this.

It's Over... All Hail the Champion Penguins

It was a stunning finish to the 2009 Stanley Cup Finals. Pittsburgh overcame being down two games to none to best the Red Wings 2-1 in the seventh game and win Lord Stanley's Cup. An unlikely hero (meaning not one of Pitt's golden boys Crosby or Malkin), Maxime Talbot turned in a stellar performance and scored both of the Penguin goals.

So it's wait until next year for our Detroit Red Wings. It might be a completely different come training camp. Question marks include whether Marian Hossa signs a long term contract with the Wings. If so it may mean the exit of several Wings who will become free agents in the of season. Mikael Samuelsson and Jiri Hudler among others might be forced off the team due to the salary cap.

It is certain that ageless defenseman Chris Chelios will be gone. At 47 he might consider retirement if not offered a contract by another NHL team.

So let's heal up Red Wings... training camp is just around the corner.

Game Seven Is For All The Marbles

I just picked up Erin from school and we're all getting revved up for the finals this evening. Pittsburgh @ Detroit starting at 5 pm PDT. Winner takes home the Stanley Cup.

It'll Go to Game Seven

Well it's back to Hockeytown for the ... winner takes it all... game seven.

Detroit played a good third period after seeming to sleepwalk through the first two periods. The puck took a few tough bounces and it was 2-1 at the final horn. I find it interesting though that the Penguins didn't get any penalties called on them until after they had gotten ahead 2-0. It took blatant infractions to actually get the refs to find their whistles.

The Wings took two penalties...One that I didn't understand was when Zetterberg got called for goalie interference after getting cross checked over the net by the Penguins. He gets sent to the box for two minutes. Wings had a good penalty kill when they needed it- but they never seemed to find the fire until Draper scored in the third period to close the deficit to 2-1.

See you on Friday for the Stanley Cup .

Playoff Beards

ZZ Top with maybe the first playoff beards. "Go Red Wings" they seem to be singing.

Dats Good--- one game to go.

Pavel Datsyuk gave the Red Wings the shot in the arm they needed. Coming in after missing the first four games of the finals, #13 put on quite a show. He set up the first goal, tossing a perfect pass to Daniel Cleary who shot the puck through a defenseman's legs and past Penguin goalkeeper Fluery.

Filppula scored the second with assists from Hossa and the Wings goalie Chris Osgood. Then Pittsburgh went on a penalty spree and the wings strung together three successive power play goals to drain all the life out of the Penguins.

Final: Wings 5 Penguins 0

My Three Stars:
1- Pavel Datsyuk (2 assists)
2- Hank Zetterberg (1 goal, 1 assist)
3- Chris Osgood (22 saves, shutout, 1 assist)

What's Ahead: 15 down and one more win to go to bring home the Stanley Cup. It would be nice if the Wings win in Pittsburgh so Hossa can hoist the Cup and skate around Mellon Arena... in a Red Wing uniform!

Even Steven

The Penguins evened up the Stanley Cup Finals at 2-2 by humiliating the Red wings 4-2. The Penguins totally outplayed the Red Wings, who looked old and tired. The Wings looked out of sorts and bored with what they were doing. They missed passes, tossed the puck around and turned it over and were in one word "outplayed".

So it's now a 3 game series. With the next game in Hockeytown on Saturday Night.

Refs Help Pens Beat Wings

The referees suddenly found their whistles when it looked like the NHLs "Golden Girls" were going to go down 3-0. Once the Wings went ahead 2-1 the zebras pulled out their whistles to even up the score. Funny how the three blind mice somehow missed 21 seconds of "too many men on the ice" by the Penguins.

So it's 2-1 with the next game slated for Thursday night in Pissburgh.

Coming Up On Versus

Tonight is game 3. The Wings will continue to skate without their leading scorer, Pavel Datsuyk, who remains out with a bruised foot. I bet it's broken and they just don't want to say it. For as well as Detroit is playing, I wonder how much better they skate if Dats is on the ice?

Kris Draper is listed as healthy- but still might not play. Helms, Abdelkader and Leino are playing pretty well in Draper's absence.

Go Red Wings.