An Orioles Memory

Posted inBaseball, Columns

In “Groundhog Day,” one of my favorite movies, Phil Connors picks an enjoyable day from his past and wonders, “Why couldn’t I get that day over, and over, and over….”

Now I don’t want to make it sound like I am stuck in an endless loop at this point in my life, but I look back to what I was doing 20 years ago today and wonder if I could get that day over and over and over.

Less than two years out of college, a short period of unemployment had just ended when I accepted a job in Hanover. While that does rank up there because it led me to my wife and all the wonderful things which have happened over the past two decades, April 3, 1992 stands out for a different reason.

Baltimore opened its new baseball stadium that day.

Relief Shopper

Posted inColumns, Family, Food

I try to help around the house as much as I can. My limited skills (and interest) disqualify me from many chores, but I still like to think I contribute to the common good.

The other night I could see that my wife just needed a break. She had a busy week. I needed to step up my game.

Lucky for me, the task Maria needed help with ranked up there as one of my favorites – grocery shopping.

Revenge of the Bean Burger

Posted inColumns, Food

I have to give my wife credit. She only wanted to try something different and make dinner a little more healthy.

A month or so ago, Maria found a recipe for bean burgers. When I saw it laying around the kitchen, I started to laugh.

Bean burgers sounded like something a group of people in a mountain commune would eat for a special occasion. That didn’t fit my profile.

But the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. As we get older, we do have to pay more attention to the things we eat.

I already try to limit the amount of red meat I eat. Every once in a while, I will go for turkey burgers to try and mix things up. Why not bean burgers?

Best Weekend Ever

Posted inAmerica, Columns, March Madness, St. Patrick's Day

A lot of people have placed an undue focus on 2012 because they think the Mayans predicted the world would end later this year.

We can accomplish very little by sitting and talking about the absurdity of an ancient culture using some stone tablet thousands of years ago to accurately predict the apocalypse. We’d probably be funnier than the skit “Saturday Night Live” did on it a couple of months ago, but that’s not important right now.

What’s important is how this whole doomsday discussion has missed the one truly amazing thing about the 2012 calendar, a special alignment which happens this week.

The first two days of March Madness fall directly prior to St. Patrick’s Day, which falls on a Saturday.

Admitting My Shameful Secret

Posted inColumns, Movies, TV

I admitted a deep, dark secret to some friends the other day. I felt much better afterwards, even though they gave me some grief for my transgression.

While I feel good about taking this step with some people close to me, I don’t know if I can bring myself to make the same admission here. With time, understanding and an opportunity to right this wrong, I might muster up the courage eventually.

We had somehow fallen into an online discussion about television and movies. I would say I don’t know how we ended up on the topic, but I know exactly how we did. We love television and movies.

What I don’t know is how the conversation pushed me to list the iconic American movies I have never seen. Trust me, it’s quite a list. Luckily, a few people made me feel better about my admission by baring their movie-not-watching soul a little bit.

Worries About Typecasting

Posted inColumns, Theater

Sometimes I deserve the reputation I get.

I understand why people think I’m loud (I am), lazy (when it doesn’t inconvenience others too much) and obsessed with food and television. I feel happiest while eating on the couch while talking loudly about my favorite sitcoms.

What flummoxes me is how some people develop certain opinions about me. I’m not as cranky as I come off in writing mainly because sarcasm and purposeful exaggeration doesn’t always translate. But that’s not the personality trait I worry most about these days.

I fear people might think I’m homicidal.

A New Holiday

Posted inAmerica, Columns

Today, we celebrate the women in our lives. Let’s not pretend that Valentine’s Day represents anything else.

That’s not a complaint partially because I don’t have elaborate plans for my wife tonight. We saved all our Valentine’s activities for the weekend.

I also don’t worry about focusing on my sweetheart at this time because I have created my own holiday which takes care of my needs – the day after the Super Bowl.

Souper Discussion

Posted inAmerica, Columns, Food

About a year ago, my wife and I had a spirited discussion about the boundaries of soup season. To boil things down, I think outdoor temperature, not the calendar, should determine when soup fits on the menu.

Of course, we had soup the other day when the weather during the day made me think about breaking out my shorts so I have obviously lost this whole battle.

But the topic of soup has gotten me in hot water in another area of my life. My feelings on the topic may have cost me a few friends.

Walking the Walk

Posted inColumns, Family

I had to go to the mall with my daughter recently. I noticed that she lagged behind me most of the time as we walked. I figured she had figured out she needed to stay close enough so that I would not worry, but far enough away so that people might not think she was with me.

Typical tween behavior, I assumed. But when I brought it up, she had a completely different answer. “You walk too fast.”

I should have known this answer would come. In fact, she has probably told me the same thing before. I know my wife has. On more than one occasion, she has squeezed my hand and told me to slow down.

I have the same answer I do for most of my problems – blame my family.