Hello Again

Ok so I know that we've been strangers to blogging for a little while now (actually about 7 months or so LOL) so I thought I would hopefully get our 2010 blogging skills back in order...let's see where to start...

* Bridge's parents are finally moving back home after being gone since '07 in St. Louis. It has been hectic for them but I think it's a good decision. Bridge, Vik, Uncle J, and myself are all going up at different times within the next week to help with the "convoy" home. Soon after, Bridge will begin her preparation for taking an LSAT so she can support me as a lawyer (j/k haha)

* I was recently offered a new position at Northeast Lakeview College doing more advising and getting exposure to different departments since NLC is growing fast. I've been at St. Philip's for six years this year so it'll be a big adjustment for me leaving my comfort zone but I'm always up for a challenge.

* We've almost done with planning our vacation to Boston this summer. I've always wanted to check out America's oldest major city and the history and people around Massachusetts. I've been to other areas up in the northeast like NYC, DC, Philly, and Baltimore but never Boston. Bridge has been to NYC before so this will be good for her too. Plus I am eager to see the Red Sox play. Yup that's right the BOSTON RED SOX! Now you're probably wondering how does a goofy guy in South Texas end up liking the Red Sox?

I was always a casual baseball fan. Growing up around here it was usually rooting for the Astros, Nolan Ryan, or even the San Antonio Dodgers (remember them?) but that's all. The Spurs and the Cowboys were bigger names around here. So yeah I grew up loving Gervin, Robinson, and Duncan as well as Staubach, Aikman, and Romo. But all that changed in 2004. I always liked a good rivalry and none is better than the Red Sox/Yankees rivalry...the underdog Sox versus the mighty Yanks. MLB playoffs are notoriously dramatic since they are shorter and played often back to back. In '04, I remember laying on the couch and turning on Fox to watch the ALCS pitting the highly favored Yankees (they won their division that year) against the hapless Red Sox. To fill you in, the Red Sox hadn't had any luck in over 80+ years since they sold Babe Ruth to the Yankees. The Yankees began decades of success while the Red Sox often lived in the shadow of their east coast neighbors. The "Curse of the Bambino" is legendary in Boston because of that business deal back in the 1920's. Well the '04 ALCS was no different. The Yanks went up 3-0 against the Sox and, again, the fortunes of Bostonians everywhere were sucked dry. The Sox gave up 19 runs in the first game of that series as a matter of fact. So when Game 4 was played, naturally everyone expected the Yanks to coast on into the Fall Classic.

But that wasn't to happen. The Sox pulled it out like 6-5 in extra innings to force a Game 5. Nobody expected them to do it again but they won that one too. Fast forward through Game 6 (another Red Sox win) and finally into Game 7 at old Yankee Stadium. The eyes of baseball fans were watching to see if the Yanks would choke or not with the series now knotted up 3-3. By this time, I had been glued to the TV. That lazy night of Game 1 now had me all caught up in this drama! I watched each game with intent of someone watching something like they've never seen before. I saw that Boston Red Sox squad come together and play with heart against a mighty opponent that no one had expected them to defeat. Furthermore, it was also my birthday too so it was an added treat. The Red Sox ultimately defeated the Yankees like 9-3 in Game 7 and on the road too! Immediately the Fox crew went to the streets in Boston and it was absolute pandemonium. It reminded me of when our Spurs won their first title in 1999 with all that craziness! I thought to myself that I would like to visit Boston someday because that city has pride and that is good.

Anyways I was just dumbfounded that the Red Sox became only the third team in the history of professional sports to come back from a 3-0 deficit to win a 7 game series. And they did it in dramatic fashion against their opponent of almost 100 years. I thought to myself that I'd found a team to root for as close to my heart as my Spurs or the Cowboys. The Boston Red Sox are the "everyman" team. By that I mean that they represent any fan (or any person even) who has lived in others shadows, that works hard, that doesn't give up, and eventually wins. For almost a century, the Sox were constantly sub-par and had to hear it from sports buffs everywhere about how poor they were. But they just kept hoping season after season to get back to prominence. While Yankee fans are also as loyal, they have been spoiled by years of greatness. They expect their Yanks to destroy the teams they play. They expect the Yanks to win, win, win. When the Yankees did not even make the playoffs in 2008, it was almost like the end of the world was near. The Yankees to me represent trying to get over that hill you have tried to conquer for years. They are that which you have tried to defeat but could not. When the Sox defeated the Yankees in 2004, they conquered their 'hill' and eventually won their first championship since 1918. However, Red Sox fans, better known as the Red Sox Nation, are a unique group of people from all walks of life with chapters nationwide that get together to support their team. They don't care what others say, they just have faith. Faith in anything is a hard thing to have in today's world. But they got it and pass it down from generation to generation. I recommend everyone watch the 2005 film "Fever Pitch" starring Jimmy Fallon and Drew Barrymore. I've seen it numerous times and each time it still makes me laugh and be happy that I'm a Sox fan. I was a card-carrying member of Red Sox Nation-TX (yes they have membership cards) since 2005 with the exception of this past year when I forgot to renew (dumb me).

Now that I'm getting to go to Boston with Bridge this summer, I'm excited. I think the city will be really neat. My dad has been there as well as a few of my friends and all say it's a friendly town. The day when we catch the train to Fenway Park will be exciting. To walk in and see a piece of American history will be thrilling. Fenway Park has been around since 1912 and has not changed much since then. Bostonians are very protective of their ballpark and do not like it messed with. Many have suggested that a new Fenway be built like the Yankees just did with their ballpark. But those in Red Sox nation won't let it happen. Fenway Park will stand until God Almighty tears it down Himself. How can you not admire loyalty to a team like that? So even many of the seats are still the original classic wooden type as well as the older stairways and smaller food stands. It would be like walking into a time-warp.

Bridge and I are doing well. People tell us all the time how good we look together. Yes it's true we have fun. We like to do random things and just live life. I think that's a good philosophy. But it doesn't come without work too. Yes we do have a good relationship but, despite what some might think, it does take work too sometimes. We're always learning about each other and fortunately it is not hard to make our relationship work because it's fun. Life isn't always a bed of roses. But, at the core, is our friendship. Not only are we a couple, but we're also best friends. That's something I'm proud of. So to all who read this, thanks for reading and... GO RED SOX!!!!!!!!!!!

daughters will love like you do...

Larry's thoughts:::


I know a girl
She puts the color inside of my world
But she's just like a maze
Where all of the walls all continually change
And I've done all I can
To stand on her steps with my heart in my hands
Now I'm starting to see
Maybe it's got nothing to do with me

Fathers, be good to your daughters
Daughters will love like you do
Girls become lovers who turn into mothers
So mothers, be good to your daughters too

Oh, you see that skin?
It's the same she's been standing in
Since the day she saw him walking away
Now she's left
Cleaning up the mess he made

So fathers, be good to your daughters
Daughters will love like you do
Girls become lovers who turn into mothers
So mothers, be good to your daughters too

Boys, you can break
You'll find out how much they can take
Boys will be strong
And boys soldier on
But boys would be gone without the warmth from
A womans good, good heart
On behalf of every man
Looking out for every girl
You are the god and the weight of her world

So fathers, be good to your daughters
Daughters will love like you do
Girls become lovers who turn into mothers
So mothers, be good to your daughters too

~"Daughters" by John Mayer

I heard this song on the radio today and I thought of Bridge, even more so since yesterday was Fathers Day. If you read her blog below, you read about just how special her dad is to her. I think John Mayer hit the nail on the head when he sang about the relationship between a father and a daughter. I think this relationship is very unique as it has also been sung by other artists too (i.e.-"Butterfly Kisses", etc) as well as been written about in literature too. It's been my experience that young ladies look up to their dads as what a man should be. If a young lady has a dad who is abusive, condescending, or just generally disrespectful, I think that is the type of man she'll grow up to be in a relationship with. You tend to see this often in lower socio-economic households where a cycle is perpetuated of women bouncing from man to man or having children from multiple men. It is a sad statement yet one that is common in today's times.

I really admire Bridge's dad for being such a positive male role model for her. It is often said that anyone can be a father yet it takes someone special to be a dad. And her dad truly has lived up to his namesake. He took in Bridge and her brother and raised them with his four other kids as one family. I really admire him for that because blended families aren't truly blended often. I myself have one biological brother and three step-siblings and I'm much closer to my brother than I am to my steps. That's not to say my steps are bad people because they're not. They are nice people but yet I can't say that they know me nor I know them as well as could be. When I'm around Bridge's family, it really is seamless. No one can tell that Bridge and Victor are not biologically related to her steps Jeff, Tito, Rosie, and Kelly. All six of them interact as if they've known each other their whole lives. And I honestly credit Bridge's dad for that. He showed all six of his kids equal love and all six of them adore him in return. How great is that!

Furthermore, each of Bridge's siblings as well as her dad (and mom too!) have been very welcoming to me and I appreciate that a whole lot. No one ever has to be nice to you in life but they have shown me sincere friendliness and fun. As John Mayer put it, "daughters will love like you do" and if John is right, then I'm a lucky guy.

link to John Mayer singing "Daughters"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41-oA7HLonY

link to John Mayer describing his inspiration for writing "Daughters"
http://www.artisannews.com/publicnews/users/Public/04_11_17/JOHN_MAYER_AND_DAUGHTERS_f/JOHN_MAYER_AND_DAUGHTERS.htm

Family (our topic for the weekend)

Bridgedette's Thoughts:::

Family. Everyone has one whether they choose to acknowledge it or not. While some days are better than others, our families have always been there for us.

I know that eveyone has a story about how there may have been "this one time" when they were younger and they did not have a good experience or the outcome to life (at that moment) that they would have wanted.

I remember when I was little I would always ask the question "why." (same question I am still asking till this day). Maybe I asked it so much because I know it would drive my mother absolutly CRAZY, or maybe I asked it just because I wanted to know "why".

As Larry and I were at the night parade, I looked around and wondered...."how mothers do it".....How do mothers not go crazy trying to raise children?......kids clinging to them wanting all the toys and every piece of food at Fiesta, manovering children through the crowds, all while securing the safety of the child. How do mothers always have the answers of "why" during the most crazy times....."why cant I eat more chips and sodas," "why cant I have that $20 toy."

I have learned that mothers are human and that they too are sometimes asking "why," even when they are trying to answer a childs questions of why. Some mothers are willing to have open dialogue of the questions of life with their children...and some are not.

This is not a good or bad stance, its just not healthy for the relationship building of a family. My Parents were tough parents as I was growing up, but as I got older they did a really good at reminding me that their door was open to talk about any subject; a rule that is still in effect till today.

No family is perfect, and any family that makes it seem this way to those looking in, allows a facade. Families are made up of different people, age groups and experiences for a reason. It allows a representative of collective lives so that those that are still learning about life (which is all humans) to grow and learn from those mistakes that others have made, so that they are not repeated.

I have learned that not everyone's opinion is right, but that if I listen to ALL opinions I will learn over time to pick out the good ones. My mother was right.....with the answer, "because I said so." or "because I'm your mother." She was trying to help me not make the mistakes from the past....those that she had already learned from.

The generations before me have struggled so that I don't have to. And for all their work, I am grateful.

I hope that no matter how old I am, that I still understand that there is much more to learn, and by having an open ear AND an open mind, it will be some of the ways to grow and be happy.