Trick or Treat

Happy Halloween from your friend, Spiderman. Well, Nathaniel really.

If We Gotta Sing It

How come all the great versions of The National Anthem are sung before the Super Bowl? James Taylor, Carrie Underwood, John Williams and the Boston Pops are awesome performers, but, if I were MLB, I'd just hook up the Jumbo Tron to YouTube and play either of the two versions below.

Cher - 1999

Whitney Houston - 1991

Play Ball!

Out of the Ruins

I flew into John Wayne Airport, Santa Ana, CA on Wednesday evening. As we were approaching the airport, the pilot pointed out the Santiago Fire on our left (I was sitting on the right) and "folks, don't be alarmed as the cabin fills with the smell of smoke...it's just the engines dragging in air from the outside." Thank God for that! Truth is, I was sitting in the exit row and never did read the directions on how to open the door.

Thursday morning I arose to a beautiful sunrise filtered by the haze of the smoke filled skies. Stepping outside for a breath of fresh air, I was reminded that small particulates in the air can be both irritating to the nose, throat and lungs and make breathing more difficult. Even though the fires were some 20 miles away in the hillsides, ash had settled on my rental car overnight.

Evidence of the fires was all around, but most people carried on with business as usual. I sat in a traffic jam on I-55 at rush hour and watched a surfer on Huntington Beach at the end of the day, both things I did when visiting California last May. I did see more than a few people wearing paper face mask (sold out in most locales) which was a bit unusual.

The fires are big news, both in California and across the nation. In California because they are still trying to subdue the fires and will have to live with the financial aftermath when the last flame burns out. Across the nation because people just love a campfire, albeit a really big one.

Actually, our culture has an odd fascination with disaster be it Mother Nature (hurricane, flood, fire) or man-made (Oklahoma City, Waco, 9-11). We'll watch 24x7 television coverage, scour articles in the newspaper for more tidbits of information, and try to think of who we know that might be somewhere in the area.

"Geez, I know this guy who use to be in the Air Force with me back in 1978. Great guy and a helluva a softball player. I am pretty sure he was from the hill country outside of San Diego. He was, wasn't he honey? Yeah, that's what I thought. I sure hope he is okay. Honey, do you remember his name? I think it was Greg, or no, maybe Craig something."

We also have a good habit of generously responding to our brethren when the chips are down (cliches are flowing). Private donations for 9-11 topped $1 billion dollars while more than $3 billion was raised for Hurricane Katrina victims. I'm curious to see how we respond to the folks in California. A lot of the reporting is about million dollar homes burning up in areas where people really shouldn't build a home. The story has a familiar ring to it. The only difference being in New Orleans those displaced from an area where you shouldn't build a home had a smaller mortgage. In addition to smoke in the air, I can smell a class war burning here.

I read in one paper that the 900,000 people displaced in the wildfires was more than any other peacetime event dating back to the Civil War. All California millionaires, no doubt.

"No kidding? I didn't hear that! Where did you hear that? More than Katrina, huh? How come I didn't hear about that?"

Bingo! I found my tidbit. Now if I could only remember Craig's last name and confirm he was one of the homeless, I'll be the toast of the water cooler gossip gang.

Shut Your Big Yapper Part II

Carl Yastrzemski threw out the ceremonial game ball for the opening of the World Series, and it brought back a flood of memories. As kids we all dreamed of growing up to be a baseball player just like Yaz. Note that I didn't say a pro baseball player. A young boy wouldn't identify with playing for money, but only for the love of the game. As Hall of Famer Ernie Banks famously said, "It's a great day for a ball game; let's play two!"

Baseball is a great game. A little slow if you are a bystander, but being in the game is a joy. A lot of young boys lived to wake up on a summer day, ride a bike to the local park and play sandlot baseball with all their pals. Some older men pay a lot of money to recapture these moments at a baseball fantasy camp. As I said, baseball is a great game.

I've enjoyed the first two games of this year's Series, but wouldn't it be nice if we could get a moment of silence in honor of the game? Do Joe Buck or Tim McCarver ever shut up? There isn't one second of dead time during the Fox 4 hour broadcast. I always get the impression Tim McCarver is trying to tell us he knows more about baseball than anyone else on the planet. He explains the game as if it were on par with a chess match - it isn't. Chess is a game played between two geniuses (genii?). Baseball is a game played between kids who have grown into men, but still have the mental capacity of a kid. Yogi Berra played in 75 World Series games. An 8th grade dropout, Berra once said, "It's hard to make predictions, especially about the future." See the ball, hit the ball. Let's keep it simple Mr. McCarver.

ESPN's Baseball Tonight is just as bad. I watched the post game show after the 2nd game and they had 5 guys analyzing Hideki Okajima's pitching performance. For the record he faced 7 Rockies and struck out 5 in 2 1/3 innings of relief work. Excellent results, but once Dusty Baker explained that he struck out 5 batters, what could Peter Gammons and the other 3 stooges add to the conversation? How do I get one of these jobs?

Shut up. Shut up! Please, please shut up!

Shut Your Big Yapper

Leave it to the Yankees and New York media to steal the thunder of the World Series with the Joe Torre story. I like Joe, but can someone muzzle Torre, Jeter, Rivera, Steinbrenner, Cashman, Levine and anyone else wearing the pinstripes? If it isn't Torre, it's some moron pondering the question of A-Rod joining the Red Sox.

Why doesn't Major League Baseball institute a rule freezing transactions, firing and hiring, and press releases during the Championship and World Series? Have some respect for the game and the teams that deserve to bask in the limelight after 6 months of head to head competition.

I took to the skies to filter out the noise and enjoy the World Series. Through the miracle of Direct TV, I was able to watch the Soxs pound the Rocks from 38,000 feet above sea-level. A Dallas to Los Angeles flight goes by in a hurry when you are in the midst of a 13 run rally.

The Red Sox are a very good team. Kevin Youkilis, Big Papi, Manny, J.D. Drew, Justin Pedroia are killing the ball. Josh Beckett is unhittable; he struck out 5 of the first 6 batters in Game 1.

Hey, does anyone know who manages the Red Sox? I'd love to hear from that guy right about now.

Indian Summer

We slept with the windows open last night. Three weeks into October and we're still experiencing Summer weather. It's been nice. And yet, I wouldn't mind seeing the glitter of the morning sun on a field following a killing frost.

Landlubber

Late this Summer I made a trip out West and reported my dream of being a mountain man was quashed by altitude sickness (Scratch Mountain Man Off the List). Our good friends, the Karnolts, took us sailing yesterday and you can officially cross Sea Captain off the list of adventure jobs for me as well.

As we puttered down the Mystic River towards Long Island Sound, I was feeling pretty good. Smooth sailing as they say, but without the sail - we had the outboard motor running. But as soon as we passed Gull Island (one in every bay), raised the front sail (jib?) and crossed the imaginary line into the Sound, the bottom fell out...of my stomach.

Had I been alive during the great Irish migration, I would have stayed in Mayo with the potatoes. I can't imagine sitting below deck on a commercial sailing vessel sloshing around the Atlantic for 8 weeks at a time. During Black 47 (1847), 30,000 Irish emigrants died on board ships coming out of England.

200 yards southeast of Gull Island, I could feel their pain.

Brainwashing

We brought Jakers (Nathaniel) to a college football game on Saturday. It was a Division III game at Trinity College in Hartford. Trinity has a solid pigskin tradition and they play a decent brand of football. Yesterday they waxed Bowdoin, 54-13!

The varsity soccer team was also playing Bowdoin (lost 2-1) in an adjacent field. Jakers wandered over to watch the soccer match, but I was able to get him back to the gridiron field with a hot dog and soda bribe.

"Can I get M&Ms too, Papa?"

"Sure thing, Jakers! C'mon, let's go watch some football!"

He's going to be a football player.

The Ten Suggestions

A new animated movie came out yesterday aimed squarely at the family - The Ten Commandments. The founder of Promenade Films decided to make the movie after seeing polling results indicating more Americans know the ingredients of a Big Mac than the 10 Commandments.

This week Disney Radio came under fire for taking out a reference to God in the studio's marketing spot. Several news outlets found the move by Disney Radio to be outrageous, chief among them Fox News and The Catholic News Agency. I did a search on CNN's website to see if they covered the story, but couldn't find anything except a link to Fox News. I did a similar search on the CBS News and New York Times websites - nothing. God's going to be real pleased to find out He's tier two news. 40 days of flooding anyone? How about pestilence? I'm getting my flu shot on Monday.

The Ten Commandments according to God as originally reported by Moses:

1. I, the Lord, am your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that place of slavery. You shall not have other gods besides me.
2. You shall not take the name of the Lord, your God, in vain.
3. Remember to keep holy the Sabbath day.
4. Honor your father and your mother.
5. You shall not kill.
6. You shall not commit adultery.
7. You shall not steal.
8. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
9. You shall not covet your neighbor's house.
10. You shall not covet your neighbor's wife, nor his male or female slave, nor his ox or ass, or anything else that belongs to him.

Teddy Bear

Two weeks ago we flew cross country to visit Yellowstone National Park and see, among other things, bears. We saw both black bear and grizzly bear. In fact, a grizzly bear crossed the road in front of our car on one occasion.

Today I read where a man shot and killed a black bear in the woods behind his home in Monroe, NY. Monroe is 67 miles northwest of downtown Manhattan. I think Metro North has a train stop in the next town over.

Personally, I hate to see a bear die. I don't get to see that many of them live.

Reading the article, the particular black bear killed might be the largest bear ever shot in the state of New York. It weighed in at 626 pounds. That's bigger than a lot of grizzly bears I've seen in Montana.

It turns out the bear lived in the same neighborhood as the man who shot him. In fact, it was common to see the bear lumber out of the woods early in the morning as the kids were lining up at the bus stop. He had a social bent to his personality and had taken to human environs. The black bear had a bad habit of visiting several households on garbage night.

On the first day of hunting season, Monroe's own Teddy Roosevelt put on camo hunting fatigues, grabbed a bow and arrow and headed out the back door. Not too far from his home, he came across the friendly bear, pulled back the bow and let fly with an arrow through the heart.

I have a jaded view of hunting because of a love for animals, especially bears. In today's violent world, I'm thinking more people would freak out at the sight of a camouflaged man walking through the cul de sac with a loaded cross bow than they would seeing a big ol' sleepy bear sifting through a garbage can.

On Being a Good Dad

Aging is often associated with negative connotations - greying or thinning hair, failing eyesight, loss of hearing, general aches & pains. But the glass half-full theory says aging has some benefits as well including experience, patience and the migration towards wisdom.

I picked up a pamphlet on fatherhood in the church narthex on Sunday. Reading through a series of 12 suggestions on how to be a better dad, it all made perfect sense to me. Had I read it 20 years ago with 3 little ones in hand, I probably would have mumbled "kiss my ass" underneath my breath. Young, bold and full of pride, who the hell needed anybody's advice?

Hint to all the young fathers - give in to the wisdom. It will serve you well.

Fatherhood’s 12 Secrets

“And, fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.” – Bible

“If fathers who fear fathering and run away from it could only see how little fathering is enough. Mostly, the father just needs to be there.” – Frank Pittman

The best thing about being a father is being a father. Here’s what experienced fathers say they would have done if they had it to do over again.

1. It’s all about time – Commit to giving some of your free time to your kids. It’s really like investing. You put your time in now and reap great rewards as your kids mature.

2. Do things with the kids –Kids love to do what dad is going, but only if he is paying attention. And they need to do kids things, too. Read books to them, go to the zoo, to the park, to the beach, on camp outs, fishing, hiking, skating…

3. Be a role model –To them you are the king. What you do and say and how you act becomes what they want to be. Give them a role model that they can be proud of.

4. Discipline fairly with love – Discipline is crucial to the development of children. They want boundaries. Pick the important “battles” – discipline for outright defiance, not childish foolishness. It is your job to let them know that your love and acceptance remain strong even while they are being punished.

5. Approve, approve, approve – Your children start life kind of like a lump of clay. You mold and shape them by every word that you speak. Encourage them at every step. They will come to believe about themselves what you believe.

6. Respect their mother – In the home, children need to see love and respect between dad and mom. They form their opinions about how a family should be by watching how mom and dad treat each other.

7. Eat together – This sounds so easy, but it is one of the hardest things to do in practice. It’s also one of the most important. This is where you can listen to what matters to them.

8. Be a teacher – You may not see yourself as a teacher, but to your kids, you know everything in the whole wide world. Wherever your life crosses the lives of your children, you become close to them.

9. Tell them about God – Church may teach your kids about God, but they will watch and listen to you to see what faith in God means.

10. Earn their respect – Earn their respect now, so that you can talk to them when the chips are down. They immediately notice any difference in what you are saying and what you actually do. Rebellion is very common when children do not respect your or your actions.

11. Know their friends – Know the friends of your kids. Even more important, involve them in your family. Do things that kids love so that your children want their friends to come with you. Be the one who organizes the trip to the beach or lake. Your kids get the added benefit of popularity with their friends, while you get to be involved in the lives of your children.

12. Break the mold – Have you ever said to yourself, “I don’t want to be like my father,” yet you find yourself parenting just like he did? Stop and evaluate what your father did right, and what he did poorly. Break the mold that made you. Change those things that you have inherited from your father that hurt you as you grew up. Pass on to your own sons and daughters more positive tools to work with in raising their own children.

From the pamphlet "12 Secrets of Fatherhood," published by Heritage House ’76, Inc.

Running Wild

When our first born son was coming up on his 4th birthday, Julie and I had a debate about enrolling John in pre-school. "We can't send the poor kid to kindergarten without some classroom exposure, can we?"

The trend was to get your child into the education system as early as possible so he'd have a leg up on the competition. Besides, compared to all the other kids in our circle, John was a genius. We just had to get him into school!

We had a similar conversation about our daughter Jessica 2 years later. Off to private pre-school she went at the tender age of 4 already conversant in her ABC's and 123's.

But when it came time to push baby James out the door, we took a different path. Following a glass of wine, reminiscing about our own childhood and laying of the hands on a Ouija board, we opted to keep James home until summoned by the Board of Education.

The change in philosophy came in part by peering into our future and recognizing that once you start down the path of being institutionalized (school & work), your freedom is lost until you are eligible for social security. Who'd want to wish that on a loved one?

2 weeks ago near Jackson Hole, I saw a young bison run free with unbridled enthusiasm. While a herd of 20 buffalo sauntered across the open range, this little guy cut a figure eight around his mother, father, uncles, aunts, siblings and cousins. Beyond the horizon probably lay a wolf in waiting, but why think about that? The air was crisp and the sun peeking through the clouds, so let's just run!

My grandson Nathaniel just wants to run. He's always cutting a figure eight. When he gets to school they'll teach him how to ditch that habit. Run away, Nathaniel, run away!

My Fair Lady

There are a lot of things Julie can do that she'll pass along to the next generation of Mullen girls. She'll teach them to cut out a pattern, sew an evening gown, set a hair style, apply make-up, bake an apple pie, cook a corned beef, simmer homemade soup, can zucchini relish, grow tomatoes, plant a perennial garden, make a holiday wreath, decorate a Christmas Tree, and celebrate a child's birthday. She'll also teach them about God's love for us all, and of the spiritual pipeline Mary provides through praying the Rosary.

I think there are other Moms who can teach their girls the same skills, but can they show them how to find a wall stud? How about starting up a chainsaw or unclogging a drain pipe? Roofing anyone? Come to think of it, the boys would do well to spend some time with Julie, too. Who knows, learning how to cross-stitch might come in handy someday.

Mr. November

The baseball playoffs are upon us and the Boston Red Sox look pretty darn good. My bet is come November 2nd, the Bosoxs will have won the World Series. They may have to do it wearing mukluks instead of cleats, but it'll be party time at the Cask'n Flagon.

Manny Ramirez is in a zone. Throw him a strike and he's going to hit a laser. Last night Cleveland ace C.C. Sabathia pitched around Manny with the bases loaded preferring to walk in 1 run v. giving up 4. The Boston sports beat might have to retire "Manny Being Manny" if Reggie Jackson will give up the copyrights to Mr. October.

Then again with game 7 of the Fall Classic scheduled for November 1st, we might be able to crown Manny, Mr. November. Baseball in November? The Patriots will be 8-0, and the Bruins 11 games into another losing season. The Celtic's new Big Three tip off the day after the World Series ends. College Football, golf or tennis anyone?

I wasn't around when the Sox won the World Series in 1918, but Babe Ruth tossed a shut out in game 1 and Boston knocked out the Chicago Cubs on September 11th. Most people think of Babe Ruth as the guy who hit more home runs drunk than Barry Bonds did on steroids. When he was with the Sox, Ruth was the ace of the pitching staff - a 20 game winner. Given Autumn doesn't officially start until September 21st, technically the 1918 World Series was a Summer Classic.

I was around when Boston lost to St. Louis in 1967, and recall listening to game 1 in Mrs. Noonan's 4th grade classroom. Through the aid of a pocket-sized transistor radio, a plug-in ear piece and a long sleeve dress shirt, I was able to keep one ear on the phonics lessons and the other on Carl Yastremzki. Bob Gibson and the Cardinals ended the Impossible Dream season when he struck out George Scott (the original Big Papi) on the afternoon of October 12th.

Subsequent Red Sox trips to the World Series did extend out through the 3rd or 4th week of October, but never into November. When the Sox won it in 1975...oh wait, that was just Game 6...the Series ended on October 22nd. In 1986, Bill Buckner (Mr. September) botched a grounder on October 25th and two days later Dwight Gooden was snorting mounds of cocaine in between sips of champagne. Manny was named the 2004 World Series MVP on October 27th after the Sox swept the Cardinals in 4 straight. A couple of million revelers celebrated along Yawkey Way as the 86 year old Curse of the Bambino lifted before October turned the page.

Let's hope Manny Being Manny stays in the groove so we can put a wrap on Major League Baseball before the month is out. Let's go Red Sox!

Save the Children?

This week California became the 3rd state in the Union to ban smoking in a car if children under the age of 18 are passengers in the same car. Not that anyone actually cares, but a fun party trivia question would be what are the other 2 states?

I don't smoke and I don't care to be around other people when they are smoking; it's a nasty addiction. But do we really need the government regulating a legal behavior in what is legitimately private property, kids or no kids? Look out all you Marlboro Men, California's coming into your home next! Can you imagine rolling down the Santa Monica Freeway with a van full of Little Leaguers only to get pulled over by Erik Estrada for blowing smoke rings through the moon roof?

If "we the people" are going to start raising my three sons, why not put the cuffs on any parent caught tooling around the neighborhood while the kids are munching on a Whopper and fries? Trans fat fried chicken in the back of a Chevy Van? Automatic 30 days in the hoosegow. We're not fooling around here people!

Where the hell is the government when a kid holds a parent hostage for a $150 pair of Nike Lebrons? Rat bastards!

The government, not the kids.

Pop Goes the Weasel

Some things aren't always what they seem. Friday we spent the day touring the lower half of Yellowstone National Park in a mixture of rain and snow. The temperature dipped into the upper 30's and as of October 5th, Old Man Winter quietly slipped into America's Backyard.

Driving along the shores of Lake Yellowstone we were on the hunt for a grizzly bear reported to be in the area just east of Pelican Creek. The dusting of snow from the night before covered the sage brush and golden fields where you'd expect to see, if not the grizzly, a buffalo or elk. But there was a hush in the river valley.

I asked my brother to turn into a lakeside turnout across from the open field. Once before I had seen a perfect bear paw imprint in the snow along the shores of a Montana lake. I thought for sure that if the griz was in the area, he'd have walked along the beachfront at some point in the morning.

Oddly enough near the pullout there wasn't any snow cover on the sands. All up and down the beach there was an inch or two of wet snow, but where we walked it was bare. I had just read about the temperatures of Yellowstone Lake being dangerously cold; to a capsized boater, hypothermia was a real risk no matter the time of year. I dipped my fingers into the waters to see for myself - chilly indeed.

But as I dipped one hand into the frigid water, I balanced myself by placing my other hand in the sand. The earth below my palm was warm to the touch. "Weird," I thought and felt around the ground a little bit more. Just where the water lapped the shore the gravel sand was piping hot! If you peered down the shoreline you could see a thin wisp of steam rise from the beach with each passing wave. Remarkable. We were standing on top of a thermal hot spot. Who knows how far below the sands lay the boiling waters or steam vents heated by the earth's searing magma?

Yellowstone itself is the result of a series of cataclysmic explosions of the super volcano kind. There are a ton of thermal features in the park to remind everyone that this is the gospel truth. In fact the spewing geysers, bubbling hot springs, spitting fumaroles and simmering mud pots are all active reminders that the places is going to blow again someday.

Scientist have indicated Yellowstone is on a regular destructive pattern that explodes every 600,000 years. The last eruption was about 640,000 years ago, so we are due for a bowel movement any moment now. I've heard that nothing is exact in geological years, but 600,000 minus 640,000 sounds like tomorrow to me.

I ran through the math while letting a handful of warm sand slip through my fingers. You can bet it made me pause to think about my own existence...and to say a prayer.

"...pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death...forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us...and God, don't let me take for granted the beautiful day you have given me today to be with my brother, my sister-in-law and my wife, all of whom I love - amen."

I'm going to research this whole notion of Yellowstone blowing up some more, but first I think I'll turn to the Book of Revelation and see if John mentions anything about Old Faithful!