Random Baseball Musings on Trade Deadline 2013

I've had a little hiatus from writing, but some MLB stuff has me wanting to scribe today...

Dead Trade Winds

The trade deadline in baseball came and went without much fanfare. And that shouldn't be a surprise.

With so many teams still within sniffing distance of the playoffs (including division leaders, there are 15 teams within 5 games of a playoff spot entering today) and the extra wild card spot helping keep teams in the playoff race, there's not a lot of teams willing to pull the trigger on major moves. Some of these teams on the fringe are in the uneviable position of "Should I Stay or Should I Go?", not far enough out of the playoffs to concede anything but far enough where you're going to have to gain X number of games on a bunch of teams in the next two months.

Trading guys was no problem for the crap de la crap of baseball (Astros, Cubs, White Sox all trading top half of the rotation starters to contenders). Hell, we even got one of the best trades for names in MLB history, as the Orioles shipped Hoes (L.J. Hoes - he's real, trust me) to Houston for Bud (Bud Norris). The only other trade I can think of with better names was when Detroit traded Furbush to Seattle for Fister.

The End of Long Deals?

Two stories that have transpired from the past couple weeks could not have been timed out better. As A-Rod, among many others, awaits his suspension from MLB on his role with the Biogenesis facility that has trampled the season of Ryan Braun, Albert Pujols went on the disabled list with a torn plantar facia, an injury that has been bothering him all season. According to many sources, it sounds as though he may be done for the year - just like his fellow Angels are (14 games back in AL West, 10 games back in Wild Card as of today).

The timing of this news has led a lot of sites to ask which of the contracts was worse - A-Rod or Albert? What the real question should be is: is this the end of long-term deals? It was going to be difficult for either of them to truly live up to the expectations of the size and length of their respective contracts (each got 10-year deals).

Here's what Albert has done since 2012 since becoming a member of the Angels. Those are not terrible stats, but when compared to the first 11 years of his career, there's a sharp decline in all of his power numbers (from 162 game averages of 43 home runs .328 average, .420 on base, .617 slugging with St. Louis to 31 home runs, .275 average, .338 on base, .485 slugging with the Angels.) In other words, he went from a Hall-of-Fame player to a guy that's above average, but definitely trending downwards (and in a hurry). There's still eight years on his mega-deal (10 years, 240M), so there's still time for him to turn things around (perhaps the injury has hurt his production?). But more likely, this is the sign of a player who is on the latter half of his career who can still produce at above-average player percentages. However, above-average is not what the Angels paid for.
 
As I said back in 2011, I thought it was smart for the Cardinals not to overpay for Albert. In my lifetime, they are as smart and steady of an organization as there has been in the majors, almost always in playoff contention. They made it to three World Series with Albert (won two), so they definitely got their money's worth and the very best of his contract. For this contract to be worth it for the Angels, I think they will need to win at least one World Series.

In that same article linked in the previous paragraph, I noted the stats of A-Rod since he signed his deal. Nothing has changed that would support this being a smart contract for the Yankees - a sub-par 2012 and a non-existent 2013 that is likely to end in suspension tell that story. They did win a title with him in 2009, which honestly seems decades ago with how much has happened in baseball and with A-Rod since then.

In the aftermath of these deals, I think you will see these big market teams be smarter in making these long-term deals. Should a long deal be made, it will be similar to the Dustin Pedroia extension with the Red Sox (a 6-year deal that signs him through his 38th birthday). Signing a 31-year-old guy to a ten-year-deal has proven to be a foolish move. The best of these guy's careers has already passed, and paying a 38/39 year-old Pujols close to $30M is going to be a disaster towards a team's payroll - the return on investment is going to be brutal for the Angels. If another 10-year deal is to be made, it will be for a guy in his mid-20s, which would be infinitely smarter than the Albert & A-Rod deals.

The Rise of the Small Payrolls

Ironically, it's contracts like these that have helped teams with smaller payrolls become contenders - as these teams have no chance in hell of ever being able to sign a guy to that long and rich of a contract.

A list of each team's payroll entering 2013 shows that you can contend in MLB with a lower payroll. Out of the six division leaders through July 30, there's more teams in the bottom half leading divisions than their higher spending bretheren:

AL West: Oakland (60M, 27th overall out of 30 teams)
AL East: Tampa Bay (57M, 28th)
AL Central: Detroit (148M, 5th)
AL Wild Cards & Contenders: Boston (150M, 4th), Baltimore (90M, 15th ), Cleveland (77M, 21st), Texas (112M, 12th)

NL West: Los Angeles (216M, 2nd)
NL East: Atlanta (89M, 16th)
NL Central: Pittsburgh (79M, 20th)
NL Wild Cards & Contenders: St. Louis (115M, 11th), Cincinnati (107M, 13th), Arizona (89M, 17th)

While not likely to happen, it is possible that none of the top-10 spending teams make the playoffs. That would require Detroit and Los Angeles (the NL version) to tail off in the last two months and for Boston to slip out of the Wild Card - all of which I don't see happening.  Best case scenario for the big spenders - three of the top 10 make it.

You may think some of these teams are flukes, but keep in mind that the Rays have been in the playoffs or on the fringe of it for a while now, Oakland won the division last year, and Pittsburgh has had strong first halves of seasons for three straight years now. These teams are all heading in the right direction and have solid player bases to remain contenders for the foreseeable future.

Argue all you want about MLB needing a salary cap, but I don't think that's accurate. In fact, it has forced these smaller teams to think outside the box, crunching numbers that were not studied decades ago in order to maximize the talent on its limited payroll (at least limited compared to the Yankees and Red Sox of the world).

I'll take my chances with the Rays, Pirates & Athletics' set-up for the next five years over what we have on both sides of Chicago.

Closer to Go(o)d: Some Surprising Stats on the Recent Use of Closers in Baseball

As I sit staring at my computer screen Sunday afternoon while Fernando Rodney did the best he could to blow a ninth-inning lead for the second straight day, I couldn't help but think that the Tampa Bay Rays would need to fix this problem in order to have any shot at winning the World Series. With how stubborn some managers can be to make change when the team is winning (the Rays have won 15 of their last 17 games), I was wondering how reluctant Joe Maddon might be to pull the struggling closer from his late-inning duties for someone else in the pen (maybe even through a trade).

To help me out with this (to see if Maddon might do this), I was surprised to see a certain trend that has developed in the past ten years when it comes to successful teams changing closers during the season. Dating back to the Marlins use of Ugueth Urbina (acquired via mid-season trade), there have been seven teams who have made the World Series while using a closer down the stretch and into the playoffs who was not the closer on the team to start the year. The other six new closers were with the team to start the year as middle relievers or set-up guys. Many of these guys had been with the organization for several years before even getting their first real chance to close.

Here's a list of the closer match-ups and career saves for the World Series winners and losers since 2001. The save total mentioned is how many career saves they had entering the season that they made the World Series:
 

		WS Winner		WS Loser
2012		Romo* (3)		Valverde (242)
2011		Motte* (3)		Feliz (42)
2010		Wilson (86)		Feliz (2)
2009		Rivera (482)		Lidge (164)
2008		Lidge (123)		Wheeler* (25)
2007		Papelbon (35)		Corpas* (0)
2006		Wainwright* (0)		Jones (226)
2005		Jenks* (0)		Lidge (30)
2004		Foulke (143)		Isringhausen (130)
2003		Urbina* (174)		Rivera (243)
2002		Percival (210)		Nen (271)
2001		Kim (15)		Rivera (165)
		*less regular season saves than main closer, but used as closer in playoffs

I was surprised to see a few things here:

1. The lack of experience that the closers who have won World Series this decade. Seven of the last eight World Series have had a closer who entered the season with 25 or less career saves.
2. The number of times a team has had the balls to change a closer during the season. For seven managers to do this in the midst of successful seasons is a testament to how good of managers some of these guys are. In many of these cases, the new closer likely saved the team from missing the postseason altogether.
3. Brad Lidge is tied with Mariano Rivera for most times being the closer of a World Series team this century.

Using this data, it makes me feel a lot better about my Tampa Bay Rays World Series bet, which I made before the season started. Well, assuming Maddon follows his own example from 2008, when he used Dan Wheeler to close down the stretch for a struggling/injured Troy Percival.

Closer to Another Change?

Another item that signals a potential change in closer for the Rays is their willingness over the last half decade to not rely on any particular closer for a multiple year period. I broke down the save leaders on each team from 2008 to 2012 to see how often, from year-to-year, teams had a shift in closers.

The Rays are among three teams who have had a different reliever lead the team in saves for each of the past five seasons. The others (Blue Jays and Nationals) have had far less success in this time period than the Rays (458 - 352 record, 56.5%) in this stretch.

In all, there have been 75 different relievers to lead a team in saves over the past five seasons. With 150 total team seasons played in this span for MLB's 30 teams, this means that the average closer has led his team in saves for two seasons (and since full-time closers always get the most saves on a team, you can argue that this is the lifespan of the average closer).

The breakdown of how many times these relievers led their respective teams in saves:

• Three closers have led a team in saves for all five years during this stretch (Jose Valverde, Jonathan Papelbon, Huston Street), all of whom have played for multiple teams during this stretch.
• Nine closers have led four years, including Kevin Gregg, who has led four different teams in saves during this time (the only player with this distinction).
• 13 closers have led three years - this is the most common length of a closer's career it seems.
• 10 closers have led two years.
• 40 closers have led a team in saves for only one season.

This data confirmed what I have learned to be true of closers. The Riveras of the world are few and far between, so never buy into the notion of a closer being an elite one until they have lasted at least 3 or 4 years in a closer's spot. Even then, many of these guys aren't the greatest closers, but rather perceived to be (the save stat is highly flawed, as just about any major league pitcher - closer or not - should be able to protect the leads required to qualify for a save). That's not to say that the idea of having a great closer is flawed - it helps tremendously to have a guy down the stretch of a close game who can blow guys away with a great heater and perhaps another great pitch or two. If I can find the time and a good site for this data, I would love to break down closer's save percentages when handed over a lead of just one run (as opposed to a two or three run lead).

Most closers have a short shelf-life for several reasons:

• Many times, relievers become relievers because they sucked as starting pitchers. Not too many pitchers actually get drafted as relievers when they come out of college. If they sucked as starting pitchers, they're likely to be relievers for the rest of their career should it be something they excel at - otherwise they won't last long in the big.
  
  In a typical good reliever's career, there will be a handful of seasons that aren't as good. Sometimes, these seasons are bad enough to prevent these guys from ever getting another closing gig. Or you may argue that some of these guys had fluke seasons during their brief success and their lack of talent eventually caught up to them when the league figured them out (like Shingo Takastu with the White Sox).
  
• In the case of some closers, especially the ones who have led a team in saves only once, they were the replacement for a closer who got hurt early in the season. Sometimes, these guys are able to handle the role well and last more than a couple seasons as closer for another team.
  
• Certain guys get pigeon-holed into specific roles that cannot be explained. A closer-in-waiting, who has better overall numbers and stuff than the guy closing, may never get a full-time chance to be closer if his manager prefers to stick with a guy he likes who might have more experience than these guys "in waiting". 

For my bet's sake, here's to hoping that Maddon will not fall back on the recent success that the Rays have had (they may not be as lucky to survive in the playoffs if Rodney keeps allowing all these base runners) and opts to replace the struggling closer with someone else, perhaps a guy like Jake McGee, who has a great K/9 (11.8), K/BB (5.13) and WHIP (0.93).

I'll take my chances with those numbers than with Rodney, who issues too many walks to be counted on to close out games long-term (an eye-popping 5.4 BB/9 & 1.35 WHIP this season, numbers which are more on par with his career numbers than last year's numbers of 1.8 BB/9 & 0.78 WHIP).

Oh yeah, and one more thing that would work perfect with McGee, at least when it comes to recent World Series trends: he has only 1 career save, earned earlier this season.

The Unemployment Chronicles Chapter 2: Linking Myself In

Last week, my unemployment became official when I submitted my lay off notice to the Illinois Department of Employment Services (IDES). It felt weird waking up on a Monday and having no work junk emails to delete. It also felt weird waking up around 10-11am or so. I decided to give myself a little time to unwind following the lay off, hence the extra sleep.

That's not to say I haven't been looking for jobs - I have. But my focus in the days leading up to my last day at Tango2 and my first days/first week of unemployment were more or less about getting my cards in order. The best way to do that, I've found, is through LinkedIn.

Many of you are probably already familiar with LinkedIn, but for those who aren't, the site is a more professional version of Facebook (let's just say, you might not want to have that picture of you taking jello shots with your friends as your profile for this site). LinkedIn is basically an online resume of what you want prospective employers and networks to see.

For those of you who wish to use LinkedIn optimally, here's a few things I've found out that can help the most:

1. One of my favorite features of LinkedIn is the recommendations section. The people you add as connections and vice versa can vouch for your work history by writing up a small blurb of their interactions with you at your current or past job.
   
   One of my recommendations for the recommendations section is to initiate the recommendations yourself. Write about your colleagues who you have interacted with the most and let the world know about their professional strengths. In many cases, you'll find that these colleagues will return the favor and publicly vouch (on LinkedIn) for how great of a job you did for the company.
   
2. There's also an option on the site for you to endorse people's skills. This can work in several ways - you can add skills yourself or you can have someone endorse you for a skill. In this particular section, the skills that you have been endorsed for the most will show up towards the top of this section. Again, like the previous point, I recommend taking the first step and endorsing people's skills in hopes that they can return the favor.
   
3. While I haven't utilized these yet, I recommend joining groups in your area of employment or desired area of employment. There are groups for just about every different type of profession, and to help you further, there are a lot of groups specific to professionals in a certain city or region. This can help you connect quickly to people in your area and profession that you may have never known before. I am in a few groups myself, but have not utilized these as well as I should.
   
4. And last but not least, you can check out jobs a lot easier than you can on most of those job building sites. Most of the jobs that pop up on my page are relating to my last role as a Sales Support Specialist. My guess is that it caters to what you have mentioned in your job history in your profile, so make sure you provide up-to-date and accurate job titles for the companys you have worked.

In addition to my networking through LinkedIn, I have reached out to most of my old co-workers and friends who have jobs in similar industries to see what might be out there and hope to get a name-drop here or there. A few of my former co-workers were kind enough to write recommendation letters for me, which I will have at my disposal should potential employers ask for them.

Now's the time for me to set myself up with some hard leads and get myself some interviews. Hopefully that will be chronicled in one of the next Unemployment Chronicles.

I may need some help with my resume, so anyone who knows anyone who specializes in resumes, I'd be glad to send you mine to see what I may need to edit.

Thanks for reading. Please feel free to connect with me on LinkedIn if you haven't already. I would be glad to write you a recommendation if I've worked with you in the past or endorse some skills of yours.

No Tying in Baseball: Looking Back at 2002 MLB All-Star Game (The Most Meaningful Meaningless Game in All-Star History)

Entering the 2013 MLB All-Star game, there's been 10 mid-season exhibition games that have been played that have counted. And by counted, I mean that the winner of these glorified exhibition games, or at least that's what they should be (as they were for the seven decades before that) earned the right to home field advantage for its respective league.

It didn't have to be that way.

The 2002 All-Star game, held on July 9th of that season, was coming at an awkward time for the game. The players and owners were staring down the barrel of more labor issues...another strike. I remember this because I was a few days away from going on a 12-day baseball road trip and was considering making a sign to carry to games, "No Balls, Two Strikes, We're Out". I did not make this sign, somewhat out of laziness and also I thought it would be inconvenient to carry that sign around everywhere. Where was I....oh yeah, awkward times. The last thing the MLB wanted at this point was some controversial occurrence to mar everything that promised to be with the All-Star festivities.

Some of the best MLB players were on display*, a who's who of the steroid era: Bonds, Sosa, Giambi, A-Rod, Manny.

Bud Selig had nothing to worry about...right?

No way. In fact, the game started out with one of the best All-Star plays in recent memory, as Torri Hunter scaled the wall to bring back a Bonds dinger in the first inning of the game, prompting a rare playful Bonds to run out to the outfield to launch Hunter over his back.

Who would have known that play could be one of the reasons why the All-Star format changed the following year?  The use of 19 pitches (10 NL/9 AL) in the following 10 innings, and Bud Selig declares the game a tie in front of the Milwaukee fans, who greeted the news from their former owner by showering the field with beer bottles and tremendous hostility.

In 22 half-innings of baseball, Joe Torre and Bob Brenly managed to run out of pitchers to use. In less than a years-time, the two skippers go from battling in a memorable seven-game World Series (won by Arizona) to being the center of the ugliest non-steroid story that baseball has seen since the 1994 strike.

Why did they use all of these pitchers? Well, one of the traditions at this time in these games is to make sure as many of these All-Stars get to play as possible. A look at the box score shows that only two pitchers between both teams threw more than 30 pitches (Mark Buehrle & Freddy Garcia). Those two were among only five pitchers who toed the pitching rubber for multiple innings. It is understandable that managers do not want to burn these pitchers out in an exhibition, but to have 14 of 19 guys pitch an inning or less lends itself to a catastrophe such as this. Without increasing the total of pitchers allowed on the roster or allowing some of these guys back on the mound in case a game goes long, you were bound to have this happen at some point.

When Garcia struck out Benito Santiago in caught-looking fashion to end the eleventh inning, it was Selig and other MLB brass who were left caught looking at a result (a tie game) that could have easily been prevented. Whether it be forcing the managers to have better management of your pitchers, allowing pitchers to re-enter the game, or allowing for the addition of more pitchers, there were ways around avoiding this tie.

The irony of people booing at the end result of an exhibition game oozes with the tragic irony that Shakespeare plays thrived upon. It was the sole reason that Selig vowed that a tie would never happen again, bestowing home field advantage in the World Series to the team that won the glorified exhibition game.

And despite this World Series stipulation, the commissioner's office made sure to keep some of the format of previous games (i.e. mandatory one player from each team, no matter how undeserving the team may be) that directly conflict with the best of each league playing for the rights of the extra game for their league (ideally one of the players' every-day team).

It made no sense when it started in 2003. It still makes no sense now in 2013.

For a sport that is usually so rooted in the past that traditionalists have a hard time adjusting to changes in the game - interleague baseball, wild card, sabermetrics, instant replay - one item that it should revert back to its traditions is making the baseball an actual exhibition game, just like it was in 2002. Let every team continue to be represented. Let the game be fun, where even guys like Bonds can enjoy themselves without the extra burden of having to play for its league's right to earn the World Series home field.

Never thought I would say this, MLB, but for once, don't embrace the change you made ten years ago.

*couple interesting notes:

1. Three current Sox were selected for that game - Paul Konerko, Robin Ventura (as a Yankee...and a player) and Adam Dunn (Reds). If you count A.J. Pierzynski, there were four White Sox members in 2012 who were involved in the game played ten years earlier.
2. Five of the nine AL Starters (Giambi, Alfonso Soriano, A-Rod, Hunter, Ichiro) and two of the NL starters (Todd Helton & Jimmy Rollins) are on active MLB rosters. An additional nine AL bench/pitchers and two NL bench players are still active.

The Zimmerman Case & The Many Questions I Still Have

I tried staying away from blogging about this, but with so many random thoughts going on in my brain about the George Zimmerman/Trayvon Martin case which just wrapped up last night, I had to try writing them out and maybe make some sense out of everything. It may very well be a fruitless activity, but here goes nothing...

In cases involving murder, rarely will you find one that does not have a passionate base of people rooting for a particular outcome - in recent cases, like Casey Anthony, the rooting interest is on the side of conviction (perhaps the result of the way the media may frame a case from the onset).

What I found most interesting in this case (Zimmerman) was that there was a clear line in the sand, with two different beaches of people just hoping beyond hope that "the right verdict" would be read to conclude the trial. More on this later...

When the verdict was announced, I was not shocked at the result.  My feeling all along was that this would happen. In the justice system, cases such as this have to have a prosecution prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant is guilty (or at least that's how they're supposed to work). It was not an issue of whether he killed Martin,  but whether it was in self-defense. Based on the details provided, there appeared to be a physical altercation before Zimmerman shot and killed Martin.  It was enough for the 12-person jury (another editor's note: mistaken again, I had 12 in mind when I wrote this last night and did not fact-check it. It was a 6-person jury) to find Zimmerman not guilty of the second degree murder charge.

Now just because I believe that he would be found guilty mean I think he should be? That's where my line of thinking starts going in different directions.

• If Zimmerman does not leave his car, then Martin is likely alive today.
• If Martin didn't "look the part" of someone who Zimmerman would find suspicious,  then Zimmerman likely leaves Martin alone, result the same as the situation above.
• In the moment where he left his car when he was explicitly told not to (editor's note: I mistakenly remembered the 911 tape as it had been played. No explicit instructions were given to Zimmerman to stay in the car, although one could argue that the operator response of "You don't have to do that" when Zimmerman stated he was going to leave his car would at least implicitly state that he should stay in his car and leave it to authorities), did Zimmerman waive any reasonable claim to the controversial Stand Your Ground in Florida? Or does it only apply when the actual altercation occurs (which starts the moments after Zimmerman leaves his car and likely does not occur if he stays put)? I have no legal background,  so I am not aware. Based on the verdict, it appears that the altercation is the basis of it and not the initial leaving his car.
• If Zimmerman was not carrying a gun when, by the accounts that I have read Martin was beating down on him in their altercation,  would Zimmerman have lost his life? Was he really worried that his life was in danger and thought that the gun was the only way to save himself? This seems to be where the case was decided - I think. The prosecution had to prove the Stand Your Ground didn't apply here.

Those who I have read supporting the verdict range in scope. Some respect the ruling on the grounds that the justice system worked because (in their eyes), the charges of second degree murder could not be proven to the full-proof extent of which is expected in criminal cases (civil court may prove to be a different battle altogether).

Then there have been those who have other issues and/or agendas involved in the case. Out of the people I have seen supporting Zimmerman, I know that many of these people have come out in full-support of conceal and carry in the past.  Was this the only reason that some people were rooting for Zimmerman to win? For some of my Illinois folks, who are still trying to figure out how the state's new conceal laws will be read/enforced, I believe it was. There may be a few other issues on the table which led some to Zimmerman's side, perhaps related to race. Whether someone would actually admit to that is another issue altogether. 

Those who are disappointed with the ruling believe that the justice system failed on many levels. The system (in their eyes) failed to convict a man who shot a 17 year old dead, one who posed no immediate threat to Zimmerman until he stepped out of his car when given instructions not to do so.

Not only do many think the system failed, but that it failed again. The reference of many in this sense refers to minorities, who have historically been on the discriminated side of the justice system. When a murder case contains the appearance of racial profiling (in this case, Zimmerman profiling Martin) and the victim's friends and family see a ruling like Martin's did, it's understandable to doubt the system.

While I understand the ruling of "not guilty" based purely on the legal system grounds of proving beyond a reasonable doubt that Zimmerman wasn't acting in self-defense, I'm not understanding the social network celebration I saw from a select few, as if Zimmerman was their close relative about to be locked up for a long time. Were you celebrating something specific, like this was a victory for gun rights? Or were you a proponent of the verdict because you feel it upholds what a justice system is supposed to do in a murder case - make it the burden on the prosecution to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant is guilty? Or was it something else altogether?

Like so many others, I have more questions than answers when this case came to a close. These questions include questions to people I know.

For those of you who side with Zimmerman, what are your thoughts on him disobeying the order to not approach Martin? If he was going to do whatever the hell he wanted anyways, why call the cops in the first place? These questions, as well as many others involved with this case, may never get definite answers.

While it may be difficult, given the emotion behind the case, to have a rational discussion, I welcome anyone's perspective on this that may have a different viewpoint or different spin on this. Feel free to message me (privately if you'd like, and we can keep it private); I'd like to hear your thoughts.

Fit Happens Chapter 17 - Post Interview 4 (B-Bo)

The Fit Happens series is finally done. After 181 days and several post-contest interviews, we've reached our conclusion.

The last post-contest interview is of the third-person variety. Yours truly was fortunate enough to be crowned the Fit Happens champion, losing over 32 pounds (almost 14% of my body weight) in the six-month contest. 

Here, I answered the same questions that I asked the other three gentlemen. I offer a different perspective in what surprised me the most about the contest and what I have done in the first month outside of the contest to motivate myself to keep in shape and hopefully lose more weight in the process.

1. What are your overall impressions of Fit Happens? This contest did wonders for me. It was exactly what I needed at exactly the right time.  It helped that I won, but more importantly, the best thing it did for me was get me to work out again.

2. What have you changed about your exercise regimen and/or diet during the contest? After stopping my workout and weight loss in 2010, I had not worked out consistently since then - so it has changed completely. I wish I could say my diet has changed dramatically -  it hasn't. That's my next major hurdle in weight loss.

3. What challenges were the toughest during the past six months? My biggest challenge was actually in the last month, when Jen and I moved to a new place. Our last place had a gym in the basement of the building, so I focused more on running in the neighborhood in June than previous months. Outside of that, I would say the occasional overeating was the biggest challenge.

4. Did you reach the goals you set forth at the beginning? Yeah, but I adjusted my goals once April hit and did not reach those new goals (reaching and maintaining a weight under 200). I can't complain with losing the amount of weight I lost in 6 months though.

5. How much did being in the contest motivate you to lose weight? Could you have done it w/o the contest? As mentioned above, it was the biggest motivation. When I heard about this contest in late December, I liked the money aspect of the weight loss but in the back of my mind knew that I needed something like this to get me back into working out. I may have eventually started working out again (like I randomly started getting into shape in November 2008), but this definitely kick-started the process.

6. Will you continue your weight loss journey? Yes. I am still looking to lose about 20-25 more pounds to get back to my adult-low from a few years back.

7. How will you keep yourself motivated with the contest ending? Back at the end of April, I installed a running app on my phone that I have used to track outdoor runs. I've been using one of my friends (who installed the same Nike app after me) as a measuring stick and a motivational source to run about 4-5 times a week. In fact, I've set a goal of running about 35 miles this month (the first full month out of the contest).

8. Did anything or anyone surprise you during this contest? How so? As much as others have said I surprised them the most, I didn't look at it that way. I knew I could lose a lot of weight once I motivated myself and made changes (I lost 20 pounds w/in 2.5 months of working out back in 2008, so I knew I could again). So short answer long, I would say that there were not any major surprises with anyone or anything. I expected all of us to have our ups and downs (which we did). I may have had less, but we all had our issues at some point.

9. How much more weight do you want or need to lose to get to your ideal weight? I would like to first get down below 200 and keep it that way consistently. Once I've established that, I'd like to focus on getting to about 175-180 pounds. At that weight, I am very light on my feet and will be very efficient in my neighborhood runs.

10. Should we keep tabs on each other as the months pass to keep each other motivated? If so, do you think we will? No doubt. I'm gonna give these guys a little space, but not too much space. I feel like checking up on each other will keep us more personally responsible to keep up with our fitness and dieting goals.

Chapter 16 Fit Happens - Post Contest Interview 3 (Hippo)

As you have read in the last couple of Fit Happens, I've reached out to all of the participants to get a sense of what they got out of the contest and what they might need to do in the near future to keep losing weight (or at least maintaining shape).

The next interview is w/ Hippo, who at the halfway mark was challenging for the lead. While he still lost over 7% of his body weight during the contest, he faded in the last few months. He speaks of those struggles as well as what he needs to do to get back on track.

1.    What are your overall impressions of Fit Happens?
It was a pretty good success. I thought it was telling that the two most overweight of the four competitors made the least net progress. I guess this makes sense since that's how they got that way in the first place.

2.    What have you changed about your exercise regimen and/or diet during the contest?

I ate a lot less and worked out more regularly, the two things I knew I needed to do a better job of. But I changed those things at the beginning and didn't make any other major change once we got going.

 

3.    What challenges were the toughest during the past six months?

I totally fell off the wagon in May and just now (early July) have I gotten back on. It was hard to stay motivated. Even with the contest going on, after the first couple of months it seemed like our group enthusiasm had waned and we weren't as active with each other.

 

4.    Did you reach the goals you set forth at the beginning?

No. I never set a weight loss goal, I just wanted to make it to the end without a major relapse and that didn't happen.

5.    How much did being in the contest motivate you to lose weight? Could you have done it w/o the contest?

It didn't play all that big of a role. It gave some extra motivation at the end of months, and because B-Bo just kept winning, but once it was clear he wasn't going to be caught it didn't help at all.

6.    Will you continue your weight loss journey?

I never went into this thinking of it as a journey because it was about changing my lifestyle, not just losing weight. I don't think I succeeded in that transformation so I am far from done.

7.    How will you keep yourself motivated with the contest ending soon?

With the contest being over I don't think it will impact me all that much. As I already stated, the contest wasn't motivating enough for me that I will miss it.

8.    Did anything or anyone surprise you during this contest? How so?

I never thought B-Bo would lose so much weight and dominate so much. I was surprised in general with how much B-Bo and Chris lost since I didn't think they had as much to lose. I also was surprised I fell so hard off the wagon *before* the  contest ended.

9.    How much more weight do you want or need to lose to get to your ideal weight?

I don't have an ideal weight per se. I really just want to be considered "healthy". Whatever weight I get to at that point is my goal.

10.   Should we keep tabs on each other as the months pass to keep each other motivated? If so, do you think we will?

I definitely think we should keep tabs on each other. Since B-Bo and Chris don't have a lot more to lose I think the goals of the contest should vary for each person for the rest of the year. Those of us who didn't lose enough should have to lose a bunch and Chris and B-Bo should only have to keep their current weights without relapsing.

Chapter 15 Fit Happens - Post Contest Interview 2 (Magic Bus)

As you may have read in my last Fit Happens chapter, I asked all of the guys in the contest to share their thoughts on the contest and how they plan on approaching their health and fitness post-contest.

The second in the series of interviews, Magic Bus shared some of the motivational issues that he had with as the contest progressed as well as his proposal to do another Fit Happens in the future.

 

1. What are your overall impressions of Fit Happens?

It was super helpful in the beginning to have some camaraderie and competition, but that tailed off during the second half of the contest for me. I'm to blame for that; I withdrew from the social aspects about mid-way through and that definitely hurt my progress.

 

2. What have you changed about your exercise regimen and/or diet during the contest?

I've still mostly focused on diet. I each much less fast food and processed foods than I did prior to the contest and am overall more cognizant of what goes into my body. During the last couple of months I've started walking and jogging as much as I can and have found it to be quite enjoyable actually. In the future, I think that will help a lot.

 

3. What challenges were the toughest during the past six months?

Exercising has been really challenging for me. With a small child, I never feel like I have enough time to go to the gym or take a walk. Of course, that's really just an excuse. The fact is, it was not important enough to me to sacrifice my personal time.

Something I'm still struggling with is sticking to my plan after I've screwed up. I'm prone to say things like "I'll start back on it on Monday" after I've binge eaten once during the week. The rational part of me knows that I should just pick up right away instead of waiting, but for some reason I feel like the week is shot. This is probably the biggest contributor to me not losing the weight I wanted to.

 

 

4. Did you reach the goals you set forth at the beginning?

Nope. I hoped to get down to 250 lbs.

 

5. How much did being in the contest motivate you to lose weight? Could you have done it w/o the contest?

At first, a lot. I would say the first 3 months were of the contest were fun and really pushed me to lose more, but after that, I sort of withdrew. In hindsight, I would have preferred a shorter duration with smaller goals. We could have had say, 3 or 4 one month contests where we could "reset" in between. I think that would have kept me motivated longer.

 

6. Will you continue your weight loss journey?

Definitely. This is not the end for me. I've got a small person's worth of weight to lose still.

 

7. How will you keep yourself motivated with the contest ending?

My wife has recently started a much more rigorous exercise plan and is training for some races coming up. I'm planning to get in on some of those to keep myself active.

 

8. Did anything or anyone surprise you during this contest? How so?

B-Bo! It's crazy that the lightest guy was able to lose by far the most weight.

 

9. How much more weight do you want or need to lose to get to your ideal weight?

70 lbs. That would bring me down to around 200 lbs. By no means would I be a small guy, but I think that's when I would be happy.

 

10. Should we keep tabs on each other as the months pass to keep each other motivated? If so, do you think we will?

Absolutely. I think we should take a month or two to reset and maybe kick off another shorter competition.

The Ultimate QB (QuarterBolek) Rating System: The Four Tiers of NFL QBs

From the moment that NFL coverage starts getting rampant on both the NFL Network and ESPN, you won't be able to watch a show that doesn't have a topic point relating to who should be considered the top quarterbacks (or the buzz word as of late, "elite") of the NFL.

Sometimes, there will be an oddball who is likely trying to create dialogue for dialogue's sake and mentions someone off the radar or someone who clearly is not a top-level quarterback. Otherwise, it's the same list, over and over. The term "best quarterback" gets overused to the point where it becomes meaningless. One moment, it's Tom Brady; the next, Peyton.

But why does it matter who is the best? The end goal is the same for all of these guys - the Lombardi Trophy. Ultimately, the best quarterbacks are the ones who will year-in, year-out always have a puncher's chance of winning a Super Bowl. History has shown that the quarterback position is where we can best judge a team's chances of winning it all. After all, most Super Bowl winners are usually Hall-of-Fame caliber. The one's usually discussed in the best conversation are indeed the ones who usually have the best chance, but a lot of times, a flavor of the week comes around to confuse some of these lists a little.

So instead of trying to constantly rank quarterbacks based on the last week's performance, we should consider there to be tiers of QBs, less flexible than the "pundit's" weekly up-and-down ranking:

• Those who have already won a Super Bowl
• Those who have the talents to win a Super Bowl but have yet to win
• Those who have slightly less talent, but could win it with the right cast of characters
• Those who would need to become a back-up later in their careers to win a title

If we break it down like this, here's how it would look, using the active list of quarterbacks. Note that in cases where the QB may not be known, I am either taking an educated guess as to who the starter will be or counting the QBs in the battle as one QB:

(1) Those who have already won a Super Bowl (listed in order by # of titles, then order of most recent title) - 7 QBs

• Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger, Eli Manning, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Joe Flacco
  
  Notes: Well, this list is complete fact. No opinions on whether these guys won a Super Bowl title. For now, I think these are the first of QBs that should be used when discussing who the best is, and even some of these guys shouldn't be considered (Big Ben, Flacco - not yet anyways). Anyone else mentioned is a victim of the recency effect (i.e. one of the guys below might start out the season with a hot hand).
  
  It should be noted that Peyton's only Super Bowl win was against Rex Grossman. I could only imagine the labels that would be attached to Peyton had he never won a title and thrown that pick-6 to seal the Saints' title years back. The more I look at Peyton's career, the more I see Favre - a guy with a lengthy Hall-of-Fame career who wins a title and could/should have won more but for various reasons, didn't.

(2) Those who have the talents to win a Super Bowl but have yet to win (no particular order) - 6 QBs

• Colin Kaepernick, Matt Ryan, Cam Newton, Russell Wilson, Robert Griffin III, Andrew Luck
  
  Notes: You'll notice that for the most part, these are guys who have only been in the league for a few years (with Matt Ryan being the exception). You may dispute Cam Newton being on this list, but I believe he has the talents to win a Super Bowl - he just hasn't had a chance with the Panthers defense on the other side of the ball. I am calling a playoff berth for the Cam Panthers this year.
  
  The draft class of 2012 showed itself to be the real deal. I believe all three (Luck, RG3, Wilson) will have a chance to compete in conference title game for the next decade. Who is the best of them - I have no clue yet. Who cares - let's just enjoy them without having to rank them.

(3) Those who have less talent but could win it with the right cast of characters (no particular order) - 8 QBs

•  Tony Romo, Jay Cutler, Matthew Stafford, Sam Bradford, Matt Schaub, Alex Smith, Andy Dalton, Ryan Tannehill
  
  Notes: The guys above have had wildly different paths in the NFL, a few of them young but most in the league for 6+ years, none of which has led to a Super Bowl appearance. This is the most intriguing group of QBs to me, because I do believe with the right situation, these guys can win a title. It's just that unlike the guys above, I don't think they can do it solely on the talents that they have shown.
  
  Romo - as much as I want to back him, especially with all the crap people give him, he's failed to take the next step as QB. Every year, it seems like you can pencil Dallas in for a chance to win the NFC East, only to fall flat - and no, it's not all Romo's fault as many make it out to be. But it is some of his fault.
  
  Cutler - I'm interested to see his talents used by Trestman, who has been known to be an offensive guru. For right now, he hasn't shown himself to be a guy who I think will win a title.
  
  Stafford - he seems to be more of a stat stuffer than a QB who can win a title. Problem is, he's getting paid like a Super Bowl-type QB but definitely not worth the money at this point.
  
  Bradford - this seems like it's going to be a make-or-break year for Bradford, who I could easily vault into the next category of QBs if he shows some of the talents he did while he was at Oklahoma. If he can somehow propel the Rams into the playoffs, I may consider elevating him.
  
  Schaub - he's nearing his chance of winning a title in my opinion. I'm thinking a Wade Phillips defense will need to be the catalyst, with Schaub playing a secondary role in winning a title. I don't see Schaub improving so much that I can confidently say he will not win a title by carrying the load.
  
  Smith - He had a breakout year in 2011 with the Niners and was just as effective to start 2012, but I believe Smith needs a system that suits his talents in order to succeed. KC will likely never win a Super Bowl with Smith carrying the team - they'd need a talented base around him to do it (a la Schaub).
  
  Dalton - He's about as intriguing to me as Bradford, maybe a little more so. What Dalton and A.J. Green have going is special, and I am a believer in the Bengals defense. This is my surprise team this year (I have them making it to the Super Bowl), so I will be keeping an eye on Dalton the whole year to see if he can have the big games (a la Rodgers & Brees) that will carry the Bengals to victory on days where the defense might be a little down.
  
  Tannehill - The jury is still out on him (as you could probably say on most of the 2012 draft class). I believe if he sticks with Miami long enough, he will have a shot to win some AFC East titles once Brady retires. He showed a lot more talent than many thought he would. I wouldn't be surprised if he never makes it to a AFC title game, but down the road, I wouldn't be surprised if he did.

 (4) Those who would need to become a back-up later in their careers to win a title - 11 QBs

• Michael Vick, Carson Palmer, Christian Ponder, Mark Sanchez/Geno Smith, Matt Flynn, Josh Freeman, Brandon Weeden, Philip Rivers, E.J. Manuel, Blaine Gabbert, Jake Locker
  
  Notes: Many of these guys have had their chances with their time in the league (notably Sanchez & Rivers, who have made 3 AFC title games between them - I don't see either one of them even coming close to these career achievements again, yet alone a Super Bowl as a starter). Vick, who made an NFC title game a long time ago (remember? seems so long ago) has seen his better days and is likely nearing his end as a starting QB in the next year or two. He's never shown himself to be reliable enough to win a title. Palmer has been like Stafford - a stat stuffer.
  
  Some of these first/second-year QBs, the jury is still out, although I'm just going off a hunch at this point that guys like Weeden & Manuel will never lead a team to a Super Bowl. I don't see Ponder ever leading the Vikings to the promised land (Adrian Peterson was the MVP for a reason). The others, I don't care to mention.

So there's my QB tiers. I think the third tier has the most flexibility in argument - a case can be made for many of those guys to be Super Bowl QBs and many of those, conversely, who have no chance. You may be able to convince me to lessen that third-tier list considerably.

Chapter 14 Fit Happens: Post-Contest Interview (Chris)

I've delayed a little on the release of these, still waiting for one member to submit the questionnaire (inserted passive-aggressive jab right there). Instead of waiting any longer, I will release the question/answers from everyone. 

First, starting with the runner-up Chris, who lost 28.6 pounds (11.56% of his weight) in the six-month contest. He shares his thoughts on the contest and what he is aiming to accomplish with long-term fitness goals.

1. What are your overall impressions of Fit Happens? Enjoyed it.  I accomplished exactly what I wanted and this was my motivation in part.  It helped to have some support/competition along the way.

2. What have you changed about your exercise regimen and/or diet during the contest? My exercise regimen was increased during this competition.  I barely missed a day up until about a month ago when I started tailing off.  I have since regained that steam and have been working out just about daily.  As far as diet, I still eat basically the same stuff.  I am much more hesitant to eat boatloads of things though.  I am better at portion control (although I definitely suffer lapses).  That is what I aim to continue to work on.

3. What challenges were the toughest during the past six months? I can't think of anything that was really toughest.  I guess maintaining the rigorous exercise routine was tough, but I generally enjoyed it.  The toughest part was probably resisting the urge to overeat.  I have been recalling moments where I had the willpower to do so and it is rewarding in its own.

4. Did you reach the goals you set forth at the beginning? I have surpassed my original goal and am teetering on the edge of my secondary goal of 215. 

5. How much did being in the contest motivate you to lose weight? Could you have done it w/o the contest? I probably could have done this without the contest, but it was nice to experience it with friends and have your own cheering(jeering) section.  That extra motivation made it easier, plus sharing an experience is always better than going at it alone.

6. Will you continue your weight loss journey? I hope so.  I am going to attempt to make my eating habits a lifelong deal.  As far as working out, I don't anticipate I will slow down all that much, so hopefully I will continue to slim down, even if it is at a much slower pace.

7. How will you keep yourself motivated with the contest ending? My motivation has been to continue to live healthy.  The contest was all but over about halfway through, so I have conceded that much.

8. Did anything or anyone surprise you during this contest? How so? Cannot believe B-Bo was able to drop so much weight.  Especially since he was the lightest at the start.  I guess he had a lot less of a muscular base than anticipated.

9. How much more weight do you want or need to lose to get to your ideal weight? I don't know that I really have an ideal weight at this time.  I guess long term, it would be cool to drop below 200.

10. Should we keep tabs on each other as the months pass to keep each other motivated? If so, do you think we will? Absolutely.  One of my heroes, Adam Carolla, is an advocate of public shaming as a motivator.  If any of us start to slip, I think a public shaming is in store.  On a serious note, yes - it is good to keep tabs.  Again, we have a shared experience and can relate to one another.  It should continue on that way with encouragement and the occasional shaming.

The Unemployment Chronicles Chapter 1: The Strife of Brian

Since my weight loss blogs are nearing an end, what a perfect time to get laid off so I can start a new blog series - The Unemployment Chronicles! And what better a first chapter name than this - The Strife of Brian!

No Longer The Warming Voicemail of the Company

Reality hasn't set in yet, but I'm sure it will Monday when I haven't woke up from my 7:45 am alarm. Just to make sure that does not happen, that particular alarm was just deleted from my phone.

Or maybe it will be when I send my computer back to the IT folks via FedEx. I spent a part of my week making sure to email all those fun excel sheets that I used in this very blog space.

Or quite possibly,  it will be when I file for unemployment to start the hopefully short process of collecting those checks. I'm hoping that I won't have to receive more than a few.

One thing I almost forgot to do was change my voicemail to a more generic one. With my cell having been the phone number connected to Tango2s website,  I needed to have a company-detailed voicemail.  My warming voice lent itself to the voicemails of my old company.

The Next Steps

The past 12 days have shown that I have a great group of people around me that don't want me to be on the ground for long. Family and friends have been messaging me, asking me to provide my resume so they can send it to their networks. For this, I am forever grateful. Hell, there's even a few Facebook friends who I never met in person who are helping in my search.

I have had the pleasure of speaking with a couple of recruiters from unrelated fields,  and while neither call led me directly to a job, they both led me to the same conclusion: I need to have a clue of what I'm looking for before going all out in this search. There's no sense in rushing right away into something if it's not what I really want. 

Within reason, regardless, I will need a job of some kind,  but at this juncture, assessing my next steps is the way to go.

If any of you have your own unemployment stories, I'd be glad to hear them. I've gone through this before but I always welcome a good story or advice as it relates to the process (more so the success of escaping unemployment or how you may have coped with an extended layoff). 

If you would like to potentially help with my search,  I would be glad to send you my resume for you to send to your networks or even just constructively edit. Thanks in advance for your help.

This is the strife of yours truly. At least for now. Until next time, peace.

Chapter 13 Fit Happens: Closing the Door on The Flab Four

I can remember January 1st like it was yesterday.

Jen and I had just gotten home from a wedding evening in Lasalle/Peru. I put on my "workout clothes" (I put this in quotes because in order for clothes to be classified as workout clothes, you need to, you know, work out) and walked to the elevator to begin my first workout while Jen relaxed after we had a long fun night the night before.

There was only one other person in the gym, which had three treadmills, a stepper and about 10-12 different weight machines for the various muscle groups. Most importantly, there was a television, which allowed me to watch the bowl games that were on (most of which I had some kind of bet on). The only thing that got me through the pathetic struggle of my first workout was the fact that all of my bets hit that day (several while I was in the gym for that 40 minutes or so).

At that time, I weighed in at over 235 pounds. 235.6 pounds to be exact. The first workout, along with about the first 2-3 weeks worth of workouts, showed me just how much I had gotten out of shape compared to my recent fitness focus from November 2008 through July 2010, where I was able to shed my weight from 220 to a low of 175 thanks to a rigorous workout routine - 5 times a week in the gym, with many one hour runs on the treadmill that spanned 6-7 miles.

My initial thoughts on January 1st brought me down to earth and realized that I had to get my ass back in shape. Sadly, 4 mph on the treadmill was tough at first, but after a month or so, I was able to run back at my normal 6 mph pace. As you've seen through the blogs before this, the pounds shed as the workouts became more intense.

Fast forward to now, and I am much better off for my Fit Happens experience, as are the others. While we all had our slight regression towards the end, we've all developed better habits (exercise and diet) that can carry over in the future months.

The Final Standings

User	lbs	%
Dave	-22.2 lbs	-7.69 %
Hippo	-19.5 lbs	-7.9 %
LionEsquire	-28.2 lbs	-11.56 %
B-Bo Knows Weight Loss	-32.6 lbs	-13.84 %

The good news for all, aside from the good amount of weight we all lost, was that no one will have to face any punishment.

And also good news for me is that as a result of winning the contest as well as three of the five recorded months (no monthly winner for June), I was able to score $220 profit from the others. Which is funny, because a part of me was motivated by the money at the beginning.

But as I stood on that treadmill January 1st, I knew it was much more than about money at that point. It was about making a lifestyle change while I could before long-term health damage could take place.

Sure, I still have my share of bad diet habits that will likely never go away. However, as long as I am physically able, I will make sure to continue my workouts/runs to ensure that getting fat has disappeared into thin air.

Nike Fit App

Since I have yet to join a gym, I have been relying on my runs to keep in shape. I have found the Nike Fit App to be a great tracker of all of my runs. And the nice thing now is that I have a few friends who are on the app, possibly because of me.

I admit there were a few times I ran this month when I saw my closest competitor in miles creeping up on me. In all, I ran a total of 24.17 miles on the app for June. A great total, which I only hope will improve on a monthly basis.

Next month, our first month away from the contest, I am aiming to get 35 miles of running. This would likely require me to run about 20 times. With my cost-cutting efforts likely keeping me away from the gym for the time being, I will be focusing on running even more to keep myself in shape.

Also, seeing my friends adding to their running stats will get me going for sure.

The Next Steps

So what becomes of the Fit Happens crew?

If I have anything to say about it, we will still keep in touch about our goings-on. Some of us are using Chris' wedding date in October as a platform for our next set of weight loss goals. At that time, I hope to be about 190-195, and the other gents have set similar reasonable goals to reach by that time.

In the coming days, I will have some exit interviews from the Flab Four, including what experiences we gained from the contest as well as our next steps in improving our health.

Thanks for reading once again

Looney Junes: My Crazy Busy Month from A to Z

It's been a hell of a month for yours truly. A little bit of everything has happened. A tour of the alphabet is in order....

Awesome girlfriend and cat family. I'm loving the new set-up and loving it even more with the loving g/f and cats that inexplicably entertain me on a daily basis. We've all adjusted to the new neighborhood quite well.

Bowling this summer. Our team has sucked so far this year. However, to start the second half of the year, we swept our first series. Let's see if this carries over into July & August.

Cell Dwelling at US Cellular Field. I've gone to a few games there this June, both unique in their own ways. I experienced my first-ever fog delay on a Monday night game when the White Sox faced the Blue Jays. I also attended the second game of a doubleheader on June 28th as the White Sox blew a 9th inning lead against the Indians.

Donations. Thanks to a last-minute pledge for money in my St. Jude/Warrior Dash efforts, I was able to gather a total of $1070 from my network of family and friends. I know those kids at St. Jude appreciate every single dollar donated. Thank you to everyone who donated.

Exercise. I need to find a gym soon or find new workouts to do. I don't want to regress to what I was before January 1st.

Fit Happens Champion. Over 30 pounds lost. Still have about 20-25 pounds to go before I'll be completely happy.

Game 6 - in both NBA & NHL Finals. Watched both in different venues (NBA at home, NHL at a bar). Each viewing experience left me shocked and reaffirmed why I love watching sports - the unexpected, unscripted drama that you can't get anywhere else.

Holding pattern. I had big plans coming up (trip to Seattle, new bowling league in Fall) that may need to be put on hold with the layoff. Hoping that I can find work quicker than the three months it took between jobs last time.

Ink for my computer. Yep, need some more ink. I had no idea what to write for the I portion of this blog, as you can tell.

Job search in progress. Yep, out of a job starting the end of day, July 5th. Any help would be much appreciated.

(5)K runs. I did my first one in quite a while on June 2nd. Fittingly enough with one of the guys who helped get me into shape. Thanks Chris. Going to try making them a monthly thing. Might hold off on this, depending on cost of 5K. Me needs to save some dough, yo.

Logan Square - love the new neighborhood feel. Moved here June 1. Love it here so far.

Mohawk. It may be short-lived, especially if I start to get interviews soon. I got it in dedication to my cousin Marilyn and the Warrior Dash run. Plus I look awesome with it.

Networking. It's the key that got me my last two jobs. It's exactly where I picked up when I heard the news of being laid off. So far, it has not produced results, but I have faith that my networks will be what gets me employed again.

Olivers. This remains my go-to suburban bar, particularly after bowling on Wednesdays before heading back to the burbs. I caught most of Stanley Cup Game 1 there, the end of Game 4, and always share good stories and good times with my friends there.

Pizza places. My favorite part of moving into a new Chicago neighborhood is to try new pizza places. I do miss Pat's Pizza, but there's a few good joints around here that I'm sure we'll enjoy just as much.

Quarterback Keeper. In less serious news (or more serious, depending on your level of fantasy football interest), trying to decide who to keep in my fantasy football league. Earlier in June, I was thinking Kaepernick. Now, I'm thinking Peyton Manning. I'm not sure how much longer Peyton has. I can keep either one of these guys for the next three seasons. Who would you choose?

Rear ended on June 14th. It was my second accident in a row where my car was not in motion when I got hit. Luckily, it was only a few minor bumps on the bumper. The guy who hit me offered to pay for my troubles, but I was not about to bother with that.

Stanley Cup Playoffs. Definitely the most active I've been involved with hockey in my life (from betting it to watching it). While I give bandwagon people a hard time, I have no problem with them. Bandwagons breed new fans of a sport, and that's never a bad thing - as long as people take the time to learn the sports they follow.

Trans mount. I needed a new one of these for my car (I couldn't tell you what a trans mount is or where it is in my car). I was about to get a new one and pay $400 last month at Firestone, but they didn't have one for my model car. Luckily they didn't - totally forgot about what was covered by CarMax and the warrant. Just got it fixed by CarMax for the low price of free.99.

Uncle Brian. Still is awesome to say. Will always be awesome. Every moment I've had to hold my nephew Brayden has been a fantastic moment. The last two times I saw him this month, he has been looking around and soaking in his environment. Can't believe he's already six weeks old.

Victory parade. I debated whether to attend the Blackhawks parade, but my parade experience in 2010 was all I really needed. Millions of people, with even just 5 or 10 percent of them drunk and an even higher percentage annoying, was not my cup of tea for this year's celebration.

Warrior Dash completed on June 16th. It was much tougher than when I did it three years ago. Glad to be a part of Team Carter.

eXcel Spreadsheets. As I was transferring files to my personal email before my work computer is taken away, I forgot how many excel spreadsheets I've worked with over the years. Many of my blogs had data stored in excels.

Year is half over. The year has flown, but it feels like this month has lasted longer than 30 days, as you can see by this blog.

Zombie Seinfeld. I caught this production on June 14th, right after the rear-ending. It was an excellent adaptation of Seinfeld that does not require one to love zombies (I can't stand zombie stuff) or even Seinfeld. Great job by Jeremy & Dan Eden, as always.