40 til 40 May 28, 2012 "Freedom"

Thanks all.

1. thank you to anyone past and present who has defended my freedom. I am so thankful to be here and do what I do because someone -- and in 99.99 % of all cases it was somone I didn't know, put their life on the line for our freedoms.

2. Quick Ba story. Yes, I blogged about him earlier, but one quick Ba story. If you want more-- ask me offline. we all have tons. Love that guy. So Ba again had MD and he would dog on me at times for being tubby. H e saw what he couldn't do and thought I should be healthier. I thought at times Ba milked it for the crowds. So we would have bets. one of the better ones was us racing from Glenda's kitchen at 1314 s. 13th ave E. to the tap which was about the 20th block of 1st ave. About a mile away. he had to get up and get to his chief Cherokee and drive there. I had to run.

Amazing how fast Ba was. and resourceful. he scooted to his vehicle and beat me. soundly. At best I was 1/2 mile a way.

Oh well. drinks were on me.

3. boobs. lets talk Twin Peaks in DSM. service was awful. Girls with attitudes wearing bikini tops essentially. Green chile parmesan wings were good. I sat by 3 strangers who liked me because I used Luis Aparicio and Tom Niedenfuer in the same sentence. made some new friends.

4. more freedom. There are some people out there that think a more socialistic approach is needed. things need to be spread evenly for all.  Fundamentally I disagree. I am old school. In 94, I spent a few weeks which included my 22nd birthday, homeless. I camped at Mariposa for the most part and spent a couple nights at friends.

I would not have made it if it wasn't for capitalism. Or pulling myself up from my bootstrings. Or remembering that people fought for our freedom. They were in strange lands fighting for us.  Life isn't perfect.But we make due. Work hard. treat people fair. Try to do the right thing.

So again. Thank you to our troops. I appreciate it.

May 27, 2012 40 til 40 "High School"

Congratulations to all who graduated High School today and to all of my friends whose sons and daughters did.

High school.

Approximately 720 days of life. They seemed like 1440  (at least). Nowadays 720 days feel like 180. But that is what happens when one grows up.

Does anyone like high school? I don't know. I sure hated it. Maybe if I had gotten a 4.0 or was a star athlete it wouldve been cool. But no. High school was just 4 years of looking over my back.

My mom was an aide for the High school. Life sucked because if I took one step outta line I was warned that people would talk to my Mom. I hated being grounded for BS.

What was good about high school? Hmm. well. I had a few good teachers. I was in an improv group named graffitti for 4 years. That was awesome.  Hilary Nuzum and Matt Adams and I were the first to be in Graffitti for 4 years. Newton Football. Newton baseball. crafty slippers. visit by Opal Snyder-- now a renowned author.

What I hated about High school. Life in a microscope. Micro management. We are being prepared for life.  all the fundamentals.

Class of 90. Newton High. We were some cliquish sobs. Well maybe more time should be spent on interpersonal communication, ooh well. If I want to talk to people from school now I know how to reach them and vice versa. I do think it is interesting how people think everyone needs to be friends.

I am not friends with everyone I work with and even when people meet up for after work drinks its not like I talk or hang out with them all. I talk and hang out with who I want to and vice versa.  I never drank or smoked om high school. that never puts anyone at the top of the list.

Class reunions. fun, but who gives a shit. Ive been called Charlie Hawkins enough the last 20 plus years and vice versa to know people can be morons. Just because we were both chubby and named Charley doesnt mean one cant call us by our real name. I got 3 years til 25th. I will be there. what else is there to do but see who has died, who has no hair and who has also gained100 pounds.

You know what I did like? Coach Rowray. He was a straight shooter

Coach Stoffers? no. didnt like that db.

If I had to give advice to the class of 16... Do your homework. Give a shit-- but not too much of one. If you get dumped... who cares its effing high school even though it feels like the end of the world. You think its the worst thing ever?  no it gets worse. You don't get dumped? thats a good thing.

Am I proud of anything? Well I did underhand eggs at people my last day at high school. no one caught em and they all went splat. Mr. Hoffmeier sat me down and asked if I did it. I said, " I underhanded eggs at people who apparently can't catch." Not my fault. I got let go with a chiding.

high school. sometimes fun. sometimes hell. It does sound a little bit about day to day life.

welcome all to the real world.

40 til 40 May 26, 2012 "Where's Berthead"

Friends. Moments in life get rough. but there are always friends.

Friends who have been through it all.

And then sometimes, random shit happens that no one else really grasps but its a great moment shared by friends.

So Erin Sharp and I one Saturday decided to head out to small town garage sale day-- its pretty cool when a whole town of 800 is having garage sales.  One of the bbigger small towns, Colfax we decided to hit first.

On the way on 1st ave in Newton between old hy vee west and the ghetto laundromat we spotted something weird and yellow in the middle of the road.  Erin was quick to avoid it, but she then stopped the car in the middle of the road and ran and got it.

It was. . .

 the head of a "Bert" doll that had been cut off.  Oh the stories we concocted as to Bert head's demise on our way to colfax.

Was it a vindictive little brother? a dryer accident at the laundromat? A kid who just loved bert too much?

Well Colfax was uneventful except for the "You Brack it You Buy it!" Sign
Monroe wasn't much better but I did get a sweet California Raisins coozie for a nickel and a 8 X 10 pic of Rufus R "Freight Train" Jones.

Clearly our most prized possession from the day was Bert head.

Now as a quick aside. . . My friends Zach and Bryan have been hiding a tape ball on each other for years. and it gave me an idea.

I was lucky enough to be invited by Amber Buster-Wallace to go to Villisca to spend a night at the site of the 1912 axe murders. do a little ghost hunting.

I took bert head with.  I decided to place Bert head in the bag of someone else in our group. Kim Etter Messinger was the target.

And in the middle of waiting for ghosts. I hid Bert head.

For the next few years, Bert head made the rounds. He was a Christmas gift once, one time mixed in with supplies. after a few years, I opened up my glove box and there he was.

I know I last hid him in 08. Who knows where he is now-- But if You have seen him. . . continue the fun.

40 til 40 May 25, 2012 "I got banned from ordering value meals at McDonald's"

Also known as "That's right, I'm the Fry Guy!"

Husky. Big boned. Portly. Jumbo. I have always been the big kid. Doesn't mean I haven't tried to stay fit at times.

Back in 1998, I decided to try the Atkins diet after the Cubs lost to the Braves.  bacon is good. cheese is good. I augmented that with an hour of walking a night and I was down 50 pounds in no time (3 months).

Well I decided to treat myself the end of December since McDonalds had a deal on 20 piece McNugget value meals for 4.99. I went to the drive thru. The nuggets were carb enough so when I placed my order I said I want the value meal but no fries. "Sorry. can't do that" Why not? I just want a value meal  but give the fries away.

"No."
"Please"
"No."
I went to the 1st window, and some of the regular Mc D people like sean mullen gathered. I asked again nicely but was denied.

At the 2nd window I was greeted by the nite manager. She said no. I stated that I am on atkins and would be happy again to pay for the fries but I didn't want to waste them. I was doing her a favor. She then went back to get my food. It seemed like an ungodly long period of time that they were waiting on my Mcnuggets. I guess they were going through the stupid human tricks.

I look up at the manager and she takes a large fry and shows them to me and puts em in my bag with a shit eating grin on her face.

I took the fries out-- looked at her and said "NO FRIES" I then dumped them all over the frozen parking lot.  Her grin turned to astonishment and she tore to the exit.

I dropped the hammer in my olds and tore outta there.

Home. Finally time to just enjoy my mcnuggets... and sauce... "Wheres the effin bbq?" SUMBITCHES.

So I did what every person should do-- I called and asked for management.

"Hello?"
"Hi, I was just there and got McNuggets and you folks didn't give me any bbq sauce"
"Who is this?"
"YOU KNOW WHO THIS IS! IM THE FRY GUY!" You forgot my sauce!"
"You dumped fries all over"
"I said no fries"
"This is going nowhere-- from now on you are banned from getting value meals"
"FINE!" click

Which got me thinking. . .did they have my picture hanging up at drive thru? "Do not sell value meals to this guy."

truth be told I waited awhile before doing a value meal there.

40 til 40 May 24, 2012 "Grandparents"

My family is pretty personal stuff to me. They mean a lot. I am out of grandparents. so if you have grandparents give them a hug. If you are a grandparent, congratulations, give yourself a hug.

Yep. that is all. I love my Grandparents.  I hate to say I had a favorite as I loved them all, but My Dod's Dad, "Papa" was the man. Papa is the reason I am a Packer fan. His house also was the site of many great childhood moments with my cousins. Back in the 70s and 80s, visits to the grandparents meant having fun. We made our own fun. He had a huge yard and basement. Imagination, world's greatest playmate.

 I also was soooo lucky enough also to have an "Aunt" Helen and "Uncle" Bill. They were foster parents for My Mom and pretty much looked out for her since.  They then were like grandparents for my sister and I. Their last name was Buchner, Pronounced like Buckner. Yes. essentially Bill Buckner.

They resided in the far south suburbs of Chicago. They were huge sports fans and enjoyed the Blackhawks especially. Memorial Day weekend is one of the weekends during the year that I would visit them. When they were younger they did a lot of work with the American Legion. as a veteran, Uncle Bill found it important to give back to those serving the Country. I couldn't agree more.

So tonight, this one is short and sweet. Hug your grandparents. Remember those who served our country.

40 til 40 May 23, 2012 "My car got stolen"

I shouldve probably checked with the Newton Police department to see if they had any leads before I wrote this. . .

When I was in high school I drove a sweet  White Ford Fairmont Wagon. It was a good car. not aesthetically pleasing, but a good car. After that car and before my pickup (1993-2002) I didn't have the best luck, whether it be mechanical or otherwise.

So in 2000, I was in search of a new car. My 76 Olds was wearing down. A friend of a friend in Colfax had a 1985 Bonneville. low miles. great history. 1000 bucks.

Sold.

It was a good car. nothing fancy. but solid. In the beginning of 2002, I got home from work and parked in the driveway.  It was a monday. I went to bed. . . Tuesday morning, I got up, got ready for work and went out to my car.

No Effing car.

Now its not like this was a honda  or a toyota or something well chroniceld as being a thieves' fav. nope it was a red bonne with peeling paint. I started looking around the block. nope . behind the house. nope. Called friends to see if anyione was pulling a prank. no. and they were pissed as it was 630 am.

Called the cops. Reported it stolen.  I appreciate the effort they put into it. took my statement. I went home. I noticed it was gone when it wasn't here.

They said they would be on the lookout but local gangs had been stealing cars as initiation and they felt I was probably targeted.

1. Gangs? what? Newton? I mean, I knew there was the creeping Death once, but that was like High school stuff. I didn't know Newton had aaah gang let alone gangs (plural).

2. really? targeted? a crappy bonnnville? with a union 76 ball on the antenna?

3.  after what was I am sure a 2 plus week exhaustive search I got a call from the police. "Hey a farmer found your car in a field 5 miles south of Reasnor. you can pick it up at Barneys"  I guess they already had dusted for prints and swept for fibers.

Thanks. I go get my car and $250 effing bucks later I am on my way. But thats interesting. There is like 3 acres of cornstalks sticking out from the under carriage. 1st gear is gone. the inside was destroyed.

I called the police a week later to see if there was any headway and to paraphrase they thought I should be happy I had my car back.

That time without a car made me really appreciate what I had. Friends stepped up -- taking me to the store if I needed  or to and from work. I will never take that for granted.

And I make sure my car is locked and I have the keys :)

40 til 40 May 22, 2012 "I rode a Bull"

Well Later on in the month became now

In 2000, I was on a church service trip to Dallas. Bryan Hendrickson, our buddy, had been there a couple years as a teacher. So we did work down with him and enjoyed his swimming pool.

Bryan, Sarah Mangrich and I were allowed one night out so we went to a dance club. The promise was it wouldn't affect our work. Nope. no problem

At the dance club, the place, it was huge. Texas style. They had a mechanical bull, too.

Never one to back away, I wanted some of that bull. $20 no problem.

Now in 2000, I probably weighed 500 pounds. But I was getting on the bull.

One thing I hadnt counted on was the padding. good to be safe I guess. I sunk in like crazy. Bryan was there to help me on the bull as was this little 5'4" cowboy. He pointed at his bony thigh and said, "OK big boy, Just step right here and we will get you on the bull." So I did. he pushed. Bryan pulled. From the casual observers standpoint it probably looked like 2 2 dudes help me hump a bull from behind.

No luck. I fell to the ground.  "This time cowboy came up to me and cupped his hands and said,"OK put your foot right here."

We tried again. By this time there was quite a crowd. I felt like I was stuck in a waterslide again.

I made it! Finally. OK. I grabbed on with one hand. the other I put up to a big sheer. Lane Frost style! Cowboy counted down. The bull went forward. I fell Off.

0.8 seconds! 20 minutes on 0.8 seconds off.

Oh well. I rode the bull.

40 til 40 May 21, 2012 "Faith Journey"

Since my blog journey is about halfway to the end, I figured it was a good time to talk about Faith Journey.

I am a proponent of doing service work. We are all in different predicaments. I would like to think that those predicaments were caused specifically by actions. You are in a good spot by doing good things or vice versa. Life isn't always that way. Stuff happens.

Sometimes those going through stuff need to vent or no others have been there and it doesn't last forever. As a youngster, I felt a strong need to help others. The best way to do it was through my church. Each summer they had summer service trips called "Faith Journey".

Faith Journey allowed me to help others and see the US. I was lucky enough to go on 13. Below are the sites and then a few memories.

1987 Houston
1989 Chicago
1990 Denver
1991 Kansas City
1992 Camp Courageous , Monticello Iowa
1993 Denver (to see the Pope)
1994 Camp Courageous , Monticello Iowa
1995 Minneapolis
1996 Smith, KY
1997 Springfield, Mo
1998 Detroit
1999 Denver, Via Cheyenne Wyoming
2000 Dallas

1989. Chicago. Fun times. There were just four guys on the trip, Brad Johnson, Dave Van Blair, the late great Larry Norcross and me. Our job in downtown chicago was to scoop a garage filled 6 feet high with rock. We would scoop it into the back of an old shell van. Then "Demolition" Dennis the driver would take back alleys at 45 mph to a location where we would dump the rock. It was a long hard 3 days. BUT AWESOME. We passed the time with the songs of 1989. Fine young cannibals. Milli Vanilli, Paula Abdul, and unfortunately NKOTB.  Great times. Got to see wrigley for the first times. Father Michael Pfleger topped it all off with a great Sunday Sermon before we left.

1992. Camp Courageous. I wasn't sure at first about spending a week there as my singing of "We belong in the city" would attest" but it grew on me big time. Its awesome. Special thanks to Zach Hickman in 1994 for stealing our paddles when we were canoeing the Maquoketa River.

1993. Seeing the Pope. I liked John Paul II. It was cool seeing everyone pack old Mile High. A bunch of nuns were singing and rocking sister act style from the cheap seats.

1995. In Minneapolis it was interesting when people at a homeless shelter would , "you don't get being homeless." I would retort, "Actually, I do."

1996. Appalachia. Its like Justified but more southern. Amazing

1998. I loved going to detroit and also into canada. Fun times. The year I missed was to Miami. too dangerous my folks said. Others didn';t go to detroit for the same fears. It was great working on homes there.

1999. Met the late Taco John. John Turner. He created taco John's. Such a great guy.

2000. Rode a bull. more on that later on in the month

Due to bureaucracy and narrowmindedness, I stopped doing Faith Journeys after y2k. I could never do one now-- Back in the day, no walkmans were allowed. Now everyone is attached to a phone.  I don't think I could deal.

I will always do service work, just will choose to do it with Suzy or small groups.  maybe a medical mission trip to San Salvador if Mrs. Mangrich lets me ;)

40 til 40 May 20th "Jerry Springer"

JERRY JERRY JERRY

So I had the perfect plan. See the Bulls one day, Blackhawks one day, then jerry Springer the next.

I got 4 tix for all events. My Grinnell friends Steve Anderson and Janelle Harklau were on board. 3 days in chicago in 2007. I couldn't find a fourth as this was a full year before Suzy. The 3 of us headed up to Chicago and actually nearly got in a car wreck on the way. There was a Des Moines Register article about this Des Moines family who lost their beloved Duck "Rick James" They felt Rick james was stolen. Who would do such a fowl thing?

I felt bad for that family. they had already lost their chicken, named nugget.

We were laughing so hard we nearly laughed right off I 80.

Night One. Bulls.  One word of warning. when you get out of the Cab at the United Center, people will offer to take your pic by Jordan. Don't do it.

The Bulls won. to date, it is the only major pro game where my team has won. its the one of 1-19.

It was pre D rose and Ben Wallace was hurt, but Kirk Hinrich and Ben Gordon played well.

afterwards we got Tore up at Dick's last resort. We stayed on Michigan Ave at the Best western.

That was also the weekend the Bers beat the Saints to go to the super bowl. Chicago was buzzing.

We could hear it all from the hotel/

Night two Blackhawks. They lost. But my favorite part was after the game. Adam kempenaar got me the hookup to go see my Favorite blackhawk of all time, Denis Savard. He got me into the post game presser. there were 6 people there asking Denis questions at the podium and then lurker me in the background. It was awesome! 

Afterwards we went back to Dicks last resort. It was fun both nights. The funny part in going from the hotel to the UC was we had the same Cabbie. George. Wow. lucky. so I got his # so he could just be our cabbie all weekend. He was awesome.

The next day was springer. The first sign of trouble that day was Steve mentioning to me his license was expired. We had the discussion before leaving but we werent sure what would happen.

Well security for Jerry is worse than an airport. and they wouldn't let Steve in. Poor guy. he had to sit out in his car.  Janelle and I made it in. 30 minutes of xray and screening. an hour in a holding room where we were packed and had to watch days of our lives. Who knew, Marlena was still possessed.

After that we were ushered into the Springer set. it was a lot smaller than it appears. First their wrangler gives us our cues. ok. I can follow. then Jerry came out and did 10 minutes of stand up. Good stuff.

Finally its show time. we did not know what show we had tix for. It was, "I am not gay!" The first guest was a little dude who enjoyed wearing women's clothes. His family was on their accusing him of being gay. Now the question I get asked the most is if it is real. Yes. I think so. I think these people are starved for attention and just want a few seconds on tv. they are trying hard to make it a good show.

so that guy got beat up by his family. then the next segment which was just a gay love triangle.

All in all pretty lame. Q and A was lame and the girls showing off their assets weren't too impressive. So I thought I would ask a question. One of the guys in the 2nd bit had lost weight and was a real jerk so  i was going to ask him when I lose weight if thats what I have to look forward to.

Didn't get the chance. as I  stood to ask as Jerry came by all I heard was Go to the Pole! Go to the Pole.

Well When In Rome. so I went to the pole and danced. They gave me a cowboy hat to  wear.

The mean dude on the stage called me koolaid man.

They had me stay up there. I guess the show was so lame. . . they had me close it out. I got to walk with their wrangler down the hallway and answer questions. I had seen the ending enough. I know people get scared as a dude jumps out. I forgot. In slo mo its pretty funny as He scares the crap outta me.

I then was returned to the crowd where I signed some autographs and took pics with some people-- see below-- random lady wanted a high school prom looking pic with me.

Afterwards. janelle and I found steve. He took a nap in his car.  We then drove home in a snowstorm.

Fun times.

I called Adam to let him know what happened.

He said,"well I guess you can't run for public office now"

40 til 40 May 19th, 2012 "Junior High"

There are 7 years of elementary in Newton and 4 years of High School. Sandwiched in between is junior high or what is now called Middle school.

When we moved to Newton I just missed going to old Washington school. Then I just missed going to Central Junior High . Berg Junior High was my destination. It was under construction in 7th grade. Really nice in 8th.

HMMMM what stands out in Junior High? school was school. PE class was cooler. except for square dancing. Junior high dances were ok. I liked standing around.

I think for the most part it was outside world events that happened that made more impact on me than 2 tweener years of education.

Space Shuttle blew up. Mr. Schwarz in 7th grade said he wanted to be the teacher who got to be  on the shuttle. well after January 28, 1986. . . Glad he wasn't. I wasn't at school actually. others saw it live. I was at the doctor. I had sprained my knee slightly in the Junior high basketball game against ankeny the night before. I was getting checked out. The doctor told us the space shuttle blew up and my Mom uttered,"not the one with people."

Yes.

Seat belt law came into effect around that time. Monkees syndication. Officer mcPherren got shot here in town.

Favorite teachers-- 7th grade was probably Mr. Sprott and Mrs. Youngkin. 8th grade Mr. Roberts and Mr. Clayton. It was good to see Mr. Roberts out hanging at the complex from time to time watching us all play co ed softball.

I didn't hate any teachers. I didn't have Mrs. Mourlam the kissing bandit. Funny how she could get away with kissing students.  Mrs. Petroff screwed me in the 8th grade spelling bee by pronouncing taciturn wrong. Oh well. I probably still wouldve missed.  Chad Hurst gave me crap for not knowing it-- i said you spell it then.

I told my dad the word I missed and he made sure the Newton school system was aware of the mispronounciation.

i had industrial arts and home ec and still use the bag I made in home ec and the magazine rack in industrial arts.

otherwise thats about it. In those years, I was just happy to survive and advance.

40 til 40 May 18, 2012 "I sprained my ankle"

How does the saying go,"If a tree falls in the woods, and no one is there. . . does it make any sound?" Or however that is. Well, If Chuck Utech falls and no one sees, does he still make a sound?
YES.

Back at the end of 2000, my alternator went out of my car. Erin dropped me off at Jacobs electric to get my car then we were going to meet at Subway at lunch before heading back to work.  I paid for my alternator and had to walk down a snow covered staircase. on the last step my foot buckled and I rolled up my ankle BIG time. I fell hard. 

What thoughts go through a guy's head while lying on frozen pavement? "Hello up there! I seem to have fallen down a cliff. I'm still alive, but I'm very badly injured. I think my legs might be broken, but I'll try to stand" CRUNCH.

This was before I had a cell phone, so I had to figure out how to get to my car which was 10 feet away.

Stop drop and roll. Well I had already stopped and dropped. So I rolled to my car. I figured that was cooler than crawling. I pulled myself up in my car. and hobbled into . . . subway of course. I made plans.  Well then I hobbled into work.  I was sent to the hospital. Of course, I didn't go there I went to the clinic. Dr. Twyner was well known to dispense  drugs. He had me go get an x ray. It was negative, just a sprain. Just a sprain was worth a muscle relaxer and 2 Pain killers Percoseth and vicodin. Those are the only vikes I like. I felt like Brett Favre for 2 weeks.

Of course now Dr. Twyner has gotten in trouble for his dispensing of meds. I had no idea back then. Just thought he was generous.

Ive been lucky enough to not be injured too much-- I got hit by a car once and was bruised. Ruptured an appendix, had tonsils out, broke my collarbone and broke a couple ribs at a roller derby after party. Thats it. Sprained ankle by far the most painful. Dr. T said I wouldve been in less pain had it been a clean break.

I will think of that next time while I am laying on the frozen pavement instead of Mustafa.

40 til 40 May 17, 2012 "Go Cubs Go"

"Go Cubs Go"

PG-13 for language

33 years ago today, the Phillies beat the Cubs at Wrigley 23-22. Damn Mike Schmidt.  It is a favorite game of mine to watch when it is on ESPN Classic. Last time it was, Mark Stein tried finding me to call and let me know. It was a great game and although the Cubbies lost, it is fun. Its also a metaphor for Cubs. Close but no cigar. Coincidentally, Chicago is playing Philly tonight. I am sure the schedulemakers had no clue of the significance, but I am watching the game. In true fashion the Cubs are down 4-1already.

Yes. I am a Cubs fan. My folks were Chicago Southsiders.  My Dad is a huge White Sox fan. As fate would have it though, we lived briefly in South Carolina. the only baseball hat my folks could find me was a Cubs hat. So 2 year old Charley Utech became a Cubs fan. . .for life.

As a kid, my favorite baseball player was a non-Cub. . . Pete Rose-- Charlie Hustle. I wanted to play like him for the Cubs.  Over the years, I have had a few favorite Cubs, some strolling through Des Moines on their way to Chicago.

Lets look at the Cubs through the years.

In the mid to late 70s, for me to watch the Cubs in Newton Iowa I had to rely on 3 things. Saturdays on NBC, Sundays when it would be on Channel 5 local or Monday Night Baseball on ABC. Monday Night Baseball during the summer with Howard Cosell was great. Sundays always began with a montage that featured Ivan Dejesus making a great catch at shortstop and Bill Buckner racing to first base to beat Pete Rose on a grounder by an eyelash. (thats always my exhibit A that it didn't matter on the grounder Mookie hit in 86 as Wilson wouldve beat Billy Buck to first.)  The theme song for the clips was Disco inferno. Awesome.

The 79 Cubs really werent bad. Dave Kingman, Manny Trillo, Steve Dillard, Bruce Sutter and the gang were feisty.  Sad to say they made it to August in a pennant race and that was awesome.  In the early 80s excitement came in the form of the Chicago Cubs supplanting the White Sox as the affiliate here in DSM. That got multiplied exponentially when they started paying games here in Des Moines. I got to obtain autographs from young ryne sandberg, Leon Durham and others. Tim Blackwell, too.

early 80s Cubs sucked. Not much hope, but in 83 I was excited that Chuck Rainey was going to get a no hitter and I was going to see it at My Grandparents in Chicago. Then Eddie Milner screwed that up.

Lets talk about 1984. That was awesome. For the most part. I actually just want to talk about The Sandberg game and Rick Sutcliffe coming over for Mel Hall and Joe carter.

Lets also talk about how Major league baseball screwed the Cubs. Chicago was supposed to have 3 home games in the 84 playoffs. One was taken away for the betterment of tv. Thanks Fuckers. no I am not bitter.

Andre Dawson was awesome in 87. steroid free too. How is that for a segue?

88. Lights at Wrigley Field. NOOOOOOO . Suzy and family and friends got to see in person the first cub game with the lights on. I watched it on tv.

89 Cubs-- ahh the Boys of Zimmer. My first time in Wrigley. 1989 against the Phillies. John Kruk lead the Phils to a win. Ive never seen the Cubs win in person. . . Even when they played the I cubs

The other memory of 1989. Damn Will Clark reading Greg maddux's lips. "Fast ball." no world Series.

90s Cubs. . .well outside of having fun with college roomie peter hall naming old cubs at night and George Bell being traded for Sammy Sosa  and Randy Myers going ninja on a fan not much to talk about until...

1998. This is probably my favorite Cubs Team. Gritty. feisty. Power, hitting, pitching. Brant Brown tried to lose it, but they Hung on. Yeah Steroid Sosa was cool and if I knew then what I know now. well I wouldn't have cheered so loudly for that cheating mo fo

the Braves dashed 98s hope, but there is always 2003, right?

I do not talk about 2003 much. I do not care if everyone would've gone for that foul ball. I would not have. All the joy as a cubs fan my whole life was dashed. It was ok if they blew and sporadically were good. I rooted for that win any given day to cheer go cubs go. Nothing was expected, but cherished. After 03, it was like winning wouldn't be enough. Every win just makes the weight of the world even greater. Closer to Play-offs and closer to the world series means more pressure. This is just a game.

I do not hate Bartman, but I hate what happened. I hate the anger I had then and still have now.

I think back to when I was a kid in the backyard.  Baseball was fun and easy. joyful.  That is gone.

I hope it comes back. I love baseball and I love the Cubs. These new Cubs remind me of glimpses of Cubs past Tony Campana as Bob Dernier, Ian Stewart as Lenny Randle. Chris Volstad as about 80 Crappy Cubs pitchers I could name. I will let Pete do that.

GO Cubs Go. Bring back that JOY

40 til 40 May 16, 2012 "GO HAWKS"

"Go Hawks"

I am going to spill something we all know. There are no NHL, NBA, NFL or MLB teams in Iowa. There are pro teams like the Cubs, barnstormers, or energy or Iowa Cornets that  cultivate great talent like Greg Maddux, Kurt Warner, or Curtis Stinson, or Molly Bolin, but thats about it.  Otherwise, following college sports is where its at.

I live in Iowa. I do root for UNI when Maurice Newby is throwing up a three to beat Missouri in 1990 or when Ali Farokmanesh made a similar shot to beat UNLV in 2010. I cheered for Elmer Robinson and ISU in 1986 as they beat Michigan. Of course we all cheered for Drake in 2008.

Iowa is the Hawkeye state and when it comes to the Number 1 team of choice, I am a Hawkeye fan. So many friends have gone there, cheered there, played there. I am just a fan. Thanks to Paxton Bennett I have a Kinnick Brick. Suzy made me an Iowa Christmas tree and decorated  my bathroom in Black and Gold.Today's 40 til 40 reflects upon my favorite Hawkeyes or Hawkeye moments.  Thanks to my buddy and fellow Hawkeye Historian Jim Bergeson for helping me relive memory lane.

Honorable mention-- Les Jepsen 1990 against Illinois in the car key game. Iowa sucked that year, but at least they won that game at the buzzer.

10.  Artur Wojdat. WHO? Artur Wojdat. Swimming, late 80s. The dude was money. 10 time Big 10 Champ. 9 time NCAA Champ. He went to 2 Olympics. Stud.

9.  Carpenter's. No not the singers. When I was a kid, summers were great. No school. all the baseball I wanted to play. and going over to Scott Carpenter's before practice. One never knew what Hawkeye players were gonna be there. Vince Brookins? Kenny Arnold? Mike "Tree" Henry? It was awesome. It is still cool too to hear Gary Dolphin mention the Late Doc Carpenter when talking about great Iowa fans.

8.  Tate to Holloway, New Years 05. I thought it may be a springboard to huge things, and it wasn't but it was one of the best Hawkeye moments in the last decade.  Hawks had this thing one until Jamarcus Russell lead LSU back.  I had a ton of friends there. It was icy as all get out here. Tate turned what looked like terrible clock management into beauty as he went for it all and caught Holloway in stride.  It was awesome. I like this clip because it has a little Ricky stanzi in it and the call from Gary Dolphin. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1o6f31AqZdM

7.  1980 Hawkeye basketball. I was 7 and a half, but a huge Hawkeye fan. Go  Ronnie Lester, Special K and Kevin Boyle.  I still say if Ronnie Lester doesn't get hurt they beat Louisville in the Final 4 and go to the Championship game. Fact is, Ronnie did get hurt. Last Final 4 team for Iowa . Good thing they are going back in a couple years.

6.  1985 Hawkeye Football. Whereas 80 hoops was about a team of guys that made the most of their talent collectively and overachieved... The world was expected of the 1985 Football Team. Larry Station, Chuck Long, Ronnie Harmon. . . They made the Rose Bowl and people give Hayden crap for not winning the big games. Wasn't his fault. Thank you Ronnie Harmon and your four fumbles. You can see them all here. http://www.lostlettermen.com/feature-did-iowas-ronnie-harmon-throw-the-86-rose-bowl/

5.  2002 Hawkeye Football.  Now I thought 2002 Football would be good, but not as good as it turned out. Thank you Iowa for losing to ISU. Yes, that sucked, but it made them better and they showed resilience vs. Purdue, crushed Michigan and brought back excitement to the Fall. Dallas Clark was the man. Brad banks, too.

4.  Hawkeye wrestling. 23 NCAA championships. 32 Big ten titles. Yeah, they are awesome.  They Probably should be #1 but these are moments personal to me and #4 is about right. My favorite wrestlers were royce alger and Rico Chiapperelli. Right behind them are Jeff McGinness and Lincoln McIlravy.  Dan Gable. Ever want to be motivated. Talk to Dan Gable, he will fire you up. Easily they are the most successful athletic program in Iowa.

3.  RIP CMS #40. Ahhh Chris Street. Not sure if you knew how many people had you as the king of our Iowa Generation. The intensity, the hustle, the car accident. RIP.

2.  1987 Hawkeye Basketball. This is like a combination of the 85 football team, 02 football and 1980 hoops all in one. Taklent, depth, played as a team, yet just couldn't get past UNLV in the elite 8. Lets talk highlights. Winning at Arizona-- How about coming back from 23 down to beat Illinois?  winning in Alaska? Hanging 100 on Indiana? (first time against a Bobby Knight team) Kevin gamble cooly beating OU? They are all great. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Aw0P_Em2cY

1.  Marv Cook Game. Before Tate to Holloway there was Hartlieb to Cook.  I listened to this in my room Iowa at OSU. My folks had signed up the family for saying a rosary before church that night. I decided there was no better time to say a rosary then on Iowa's final drive. Ive never said the Our Father and Hail Mary with so much gusto as I did with Iowa driving. Then Hail Mary came true as hartlieb hit Marv Cook. "Its an Iowa Touchdown! . . . "Ed Podolak is hugging and kissing me!" http://www.hawkeyelounge.com/showthread.php?t=84978

Here's to 40 more years of great Hawkeye memories
.

40 til 40 Magic Window vs. Floppy

This one is up for major debate, but if one isn't of a certain age or from Central Iowa, it won't make sense.

As a kid, one could watch a lot of cartoons. . . especially when Bozo show became mainstream. Us local kids had 2 main choices. Betty Lou's Magic Window, or Floppy. Now this isn't like some people were elvis people or others were Beatles people. but none were both. One Could be a Floppy person and a Magic Window person


Magic window-- Betty Lou's show has set the record for longest running kids show. Pretty darn cool. It had puppets, crafts and some decent shows. "Tales from the Riverbank" was solid. "Friends" taught me diversity about kids from other backgrounds. Magic window always ended with Felix the Cat.

The Floppy Show-- Duane Ellet would bring out his puppet Floppy and kids would tell Floppy Jokes. Interspersed was tom and jerry and other cartoons. The jokes are classics, "Why'd the man put the car in the oven." The thing with Floppy is that it was a big deal to be on the show--kinda like the Bozo show-- but without at home players. My sister got to be on there. Suzy also got to be on floppy. Me? Nope. Bitter?

YEP

and Duane Ellet passed away 25 years ago. SAD.

so I take both shows. They are parts of my life and upbringing that aren't coming back. For as much time as I spent in Chicago, I was exposed to Ray Raynor and Bozo and Frazier Thomas and they were great. . . but so many people got to see those.

 These shows are owned by Central Iowans. It was ours.

If I had to take a pick-- I pick Betty Lou

Yes , it was a little more educational. and yes, I am still bitter I never got to be on Floppy.

40 til 40 May 14, 2012 "Missy D"

"Missy D"

So last week I talked about Steve Karsten. A guy who was dealt a tough hand and he played it to the fullest.

This week It's Missy Douglas. She played hands to the fullest, also, but didn't know she needed to.

I met Missy in 2000. We started at Iowa Telecom together. It was a good training class. Soon, we found out she was also a big Iowa Hawkeye fan. We also had similar senses of humor

We became really good friends. SO in 2002 when I needed someone to pick me up in Rockford Illinois after surgery, she did. Ironically, It was Steve karsten who took me there. On the way home, there wasn't much on so we listened to rock falls vs. sterling high Girls b ball and were making our own jokes. Of course I had her stop at arthurs deli there. I had a spoonful of soup

Missy passed away while working in 2008. She left behind so many friends and family. It made me cherish a couple instances and it makes me appreciate every moment of my life going forward.

People ask me why I live for each moment. Missy and Steve. I do not know what may happen tomorrow. I am living it up today. They literally are a major reason for why I am still here, and with them gone I live for three. I am not leaving any stone unturned.

I do not know if I believe in God, or luck or fate. I thought luck was being in the right place at the right time. Opportunity meeting preparation. Steve said sometimes Shit just happens. I don't know. Here is what I do know. It was the end of my second week at my job at a major bank. That Friday the big boss Mike made a decision, one to have us leave an hour early. so I left at 4 pm to go back to Newton. For some reason I took the scenic route (porn in the corn exit) and 1st avenue through town.

Thank goodness, as Missy was at Git N Go fueling her car. Instead of a honk, I decided to stop and say hi. Glad I did. we talked for less than 3 minutes, but it was my last conversation with her as she passed away a few days later. So, thank goodness Mike sent us home. Thank goodness I took a way home I usually didnt go. Thank goodness I stopped and talked. Now maybe it is Thank God. I do not know. I just know any of us as Missy's friends would give anything for one more conversation with her, one laugh, one more Hawkeye game, one concert. . . Anything.

Rest in Peace my friends.

May 13, 2012 "Munchies"

"Munchies"

So, before we get started here, I will ask a question. . . Kind of an informal poll. When someone says, "Pick up some munchies." What does that mean to you?

So, I enjoy sports. We know this. I also enjoy fantasy sports. As a kid... I invented a college basketball game using the Big 10 conference players. I had to only do 9 teams because Otherwise Iowa wouldve always won.

I also played strato matic baseball and APBA football and baseball, Another way for me to hone my announcing skills calling all the action.

As I grew older and rotisserie baseball and football came into vogue, I jumped onto those.

Today, I am in two baseball leagues, 3 football leagues and one college basketball league (not including tourney pools that I lose to Suzy).

One of the baseball leagues I am in I was invited into in 1998. Pioneer Baseball League. It was a group of guys with ties to Grinnell College. Adam kempenaar got me in. The first year I was one-one hundredth of a point in batting average from winning. Damn you Mo Vaughnn.  Really Haven't done well since. But I have fun and have made some lifetime friends. before the majority of the guys got married and had kids, we used to all meet in Chicago for the annual draft/auction. It was our version of an owners meeting and a couple days of fun with friends in Chicago. The guys are great. The cast has changed some over the years but since 1998 it has included lawyers, playwrights, ad execs, media rep for an NHL team, world travelers and me.

Today's blog reflects on two memorable stories from those get togethers. The first happened in 2000, I believe.

Adam and denny Davis and I were in Adam's car on the way to Chicago. Jason Bent was kind enough to host most of the get togethers. On our way to his place-- and at the time-- that one was in a cool apartment overlooking the Lake. . . Adam took Denny and I to Arthurs Deli in Rock Falls. I had been to the Arthurs deli in Rock Island when I was in college, and hadn't been back. Great deli sandwiches and bagel chips. Soup is good too. Its a good point in the trip  also to get gas and there is an obligatory stop at the Mobil station we hit also across the street.

Food. Yum. done. Time to get gas. Now, two things. . . One, we were on fumes when we coasted into Rock Falls. Two, gas was cheaper then. . . Probably just over a buck a gallon.

At the Mobil, Adam stopped and started pumping gas. . . Denny and i went in to get a water and a paper. As we were checking out, I told the cashier I was getting the gas for the red car and pointed to Adam. The cashier said, "Ok $8.79." "For everything?" "Yep"

Ok, then. something didn't seem right so I paid and as we paid Adam walked in and we asked why he got very little gas, "I filled it up and used pay at pump" (I had never used pay at pump-- new concept to Chuck utech.)  So the next question was, Whose gas did we buy? Well there was another red car we didn't see but the cashier did and she put in $5 worth. The cashier was laughing at us and offered to give me my $ back. I declined and said, no its a good deed, we are on our way" Well the cashier wanted the good deal to get mention so she saw the lady whose red car we topped off and told her we paid for her gas.

Stoically, the lady looked at her and flatly said, "ok." and moved on. The cashier was crushed. I don't know if she thought we deserved a parade for $5 in gas or what but the look on her face was priceless. Denny and I couldn't stop laughing as to how this all played out. Great times in Rock Falls.

#2

A few years later we found our way back to Chicago. Jason had a new place and I couldn't believe that gas was near $2.

After our auction for our baseball teams, we were playing some poker. . . tournament style.  I got knocked out fairly early and volunteered to make a run for snacks. I asked for any requests. "Pick up some munchies" Eric Baker and I made a two block walk in the rain to a gas station and got some food.

I picked up pretzels, chips, popcorn. When I got back the guys asked, "Where's the Munchies?" What do you mean I got all SORTS of Munchies. Well where I come from munchies means snacks of varying types. Not Brand name Munchies. After a few minutes of ribbing, I made the executive decision that I better settle this or prepare for a night of "I wish I had some munchies"

back in the rain for a 2 block walk to the gas station and munchies purchasing.

This is an inside joke with our crew that still gets play today. Whenever someone is moving that is the standard line for a housewarming gift. I will bring the Munchies.

 Lifes like that .communication is key. What is important to one person isn't to someone else. What is one thing to a person is different to another. What I enjoy is that we were able to make the most out of each situation. Those little things are important to us.

40 til 40 May 12, 2012 "Chicago Bulls"

"Chicago Bulls"

The second part of Double blog Friday is my favorite now eliminated NBA team the Chicago Bulls.

I have been a fan of the Bulls for as long as I can remember. Back in the day, there wasn't a whole lot to cheer for, But I liked Dave Corzine, Reggie Theus and the late Norm Van Lier.

Of course Bulls fortunes changed forever when Michael Jordan was picked 3rd in the 1985 draft.

It makes it interesting being a team's fan too when they win it all 6 times in 8 years but really sucked leading up to it and outside of one run to a conference Championship final, have sucked since.

The Blackhawks and Packers have made the Play-offs more over the last 30 years, but have half the World titles between them in that time.

It's a tough question to ask and one for life. . . What is better, sustained excellence over time with limited trips to the pinnacle. . . OR. . . Major accomplishments for a decade sandwiched in between decades of mediocrity?

In the working world, business would take option A. High level of achievement consistently will beat sporadic trips to the mountain top. In other avenues, Championships are what people remember.

I won't ever trade away the Bulls titles. I know where I was for all of them. I do wish, they could sustain excellence a little better.
Me, I just want a team that is at the party (play-offs). If they are in the door, anything can happen. We saw that with Philly this year. They got in the door and now they are playing Boston.My favorite Bull I never saw play or coach. The Late Johnny "Red" Kerr. What a talent. He was a great announcer and the target of Michael Jordan's pre game chalk ritual. Stacey King is fun, but he's no red Kerr or even Norm Van Lier.


Also-- the Bulls made popular "Rock and Roll Part two" and they have the best introduction tune, "Sirius" by the Alan Parsons Project. It also worked as a great intro song for me and Suzy as we entered our wedding reception.
Next years Bulls team will be different. Maybe Iowa Native Kirk Hinrich returns. Maybe Iowa native Kyle Korver leaves. Who knows when Derrick Rose will be back. Maybe Reggie Theus could come back.

40 til 40 May 11, 2012 "Stuck in a Waterslide"

"I got stuck in a waterslide"

Ahhhh Kansas City. Gates BBQ, CoolCrest MiniGolf, and Worlds of Fun/Oceans of Fun. Its a great city just 3 hours away.

Back in the day, before Adventureland here had a water park, the best one around for the drive was Oceans of Fun. Worlds of Fun was sure a better park for the rides. . .One was able to go and do one, or both. Yeah I know Wacky waters by Davenport was cool, but its gone.

So, one summer day in 2000 I found myself at Oceans of Fun. I love a good waterslide. Oceans of Fun has some great ones. Tall slides, wave pools, lazy rivers, they got it.

I decided I wanted to get some exercise and travel up 4 flights of stairs and then hurl my big body down a water chute. 5 seconds of FUN!

Time to ride! The slide is a 2 shooter with a slide on each side of the life guard that goes straight down. The slides are connected in between by a little lattice wood piece. I line up, take a deep breath and assume the position waiting for the 19 year old kid to give me the signal to go.

"GO"

I take off. and 5 feet down the slide I am wedged in like a square peg in a round hole. I looked back at lifeguard kid and said, "STUCK." Now I give the lifeguard credit because quite easily he could have replied, "No shit." It probably looked odd as this large dude was stuck with his arms just flailing around. "try scooting" NOPE. I wasn't going anywhere

By this time I was holding up the line. It was growing. I thought I could hear a faint chant of "Free Willy."

Time for resolution. Lifeguard said--"Try to get to the middle."

Its funny what you think about when you are stuck 40 feet up in the air. "Is this how I die?" Is there anything soft to land on?" "Geez I am effing hungry." That does worry me when I do finally die. I don't want to see it coming. That anticipation sucks.

so here we go. Deep breath.

I rocked back and forth and popped myself onto the lattice. CREAK, CREAK, I slowly climbed to the top as the wood slats held out. I got to the top and apologized and thanked the dude.

"Next time I will lube myself up"

40 til 40 May 10, 2012 "Stand up"

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40 til 40 May 9, 2012 "Elementary my dear watson"

"Elementary, my dear Watson."

Its a little weird thinking about memories that are at a minimum 28 years old.

I spent all 7 elementary years at Thomas Jefferson Elementary in Newton. I was an eagle.

Before elementary, I did a summer at Emerson Hough under the tutelage of Mrs. Anderson. After Kindergarten roundup, they thought I had some maturing to do. I remember only a couple things about summer school. One, we had to climb up a small tower. I Private Private Pyle'd that sob. It was miserable. Second, on the last day, Elvis died. It was on the news and I asked my Dad who it was. He said,"Mommy's boyfriend." That didn't compute.

I really enjoyed elementary. Whats not to enjoy? Recess, little smokies, PE class, and small chairs.

Kindergarten I had Miss DeHaai as a teacher. She is now Mrs. duffus. Its cool that she has taught my friends' kids, too. I was just half days.

1st grade was Mrs. Baldwin. I lunch was having dinner with a friend of Mine Mort Gaines froim Fairfield. He is about 20 years my senior, and was talking about his first grade teacher, Mrs. Baldwin. I said, "Bonnie?" Yep. Its a small world. She is down in Burlington still, where she moved after my class.

Second Grade, Mrs. Thieleman. OLD SCHOOL. I do not know if she has died, but I do know she would be like 117 if she is.  After my junior year of high school she sent me a graduation card and 5 bucks. I sent her a thank you card, but told her I was a year off. . . and kept the cash.  She sent me another card a year later and 5 more bucks. SCORE!

3rd grade was pretty cool because it seemed like we were always watching movies.  The worst part is that I had Mrs. Bedell. The other 3rd grade class has Mr. perrenoud. They got to go to Floppy. Mrs. Bedell was cool, she did dress as fonzie one year for halloween, but her class, not as fun. Rest in Peace, Mrs. bedell. She passed away two years later.

Oh and shoutouts to PE teacher Mrs. Boeyink, Music teacher Mrs. Fudge and art teacher Mrs. Neff. I pretty much ruled PE and sucked at art and music.

4th grade -- Wow I feel old. We got to do a lot of fun stuff in that class. Mrs. Von Seggern. I remember her asking once ,"what happened in Georgetown?" (uprising) all we knew was, they just lost to North Carolina in the championship game.

5th grade-- Mrs. Stephens. Probably my least favorite year. I hated Mrs. Stephens. She was always lecturing our class on behaving. Who cares? we are kids. If I wanted Effing lectures I could get that home.

6th Grade. 4th and 6th grade were also cool for the fact we got to do an overnighter at springbrook state park. Fun times. 3rd grade was all movies. 6th grade was all field trips. mariposa, the library, etc. etc. Mrs. Walker was our teacher. She was tough but fair. Graduating elementary was bittersweet in 1984. no more recess in Junior High, but more responsibility and feeling like a big boy.

Elementary is like work anymore. a couple breaks. lunch hour. every now and then there is a meeting or recognition (art class).

The thing is, I would go back and do that all over again in a heartbeat.

40 til 40 May 8, 2012 "Favorite Movies, Part 1"

"Favorite Movies, Part 1"

Geez this was tough. I probably could've done a blog each day for 40 days on favorite movies and music.  Well each will get a couple days in the next month. For movies, I was going to break it up by genre, but thats too tough. Then I thought of doing a bracket, but gosh I couldn't seed movies fairly.

I've decided to break up favorite movies two ways. Those made up til Rocky and Star Wars, and those made after.  Just gonna be easier.

So today lets talk old movies. For starters it has to be Wizard of Oz. I love those monkeys. back before cable and even Beta and VHS it was a big deal when it was Wizard of Oz night on CBS at the Utech house. Wizard of Oz is a great movie for a few reasons. Who doesn't love monkeys? If evil could always be conquered by just throwing water on it, how great would that be? Toto is an awesome dog.

Sticking with Musicals, my favorite is Singing in the Rain. Yes, before an announcing gig I run through "Moses Supposes" in my head to keep my tongue untied. Gene Kelly is great and although there are now stories out that he was not always the best guy to work with, I really enjoy his interactions with Donald O'Connor. "Make 'em Laugh" is a great song and a great credo to live by.  Kudos also to Jean Hagen, who was superb as Lina LaMont. She was lost way too soon.  In the old days, there really weren't sequels, and this is one I would have liked to see more with these characters.

Some of my adoration for musicals is due to my Mom. She was passionate about them and had all of the soundtracks. The next musical on my list is The music man. Great songs, great acting and little Ronnie Howard. If one ever has time, and is in Mason City, stop by the Music man museum. Its worth it. The movie itself is timeless. Oh there's gonna be trouble!

NEXT!

North by Northwest. Cary Grant hanging from Mount Rushmore. Classic. spoiler alert-- Right before Cary Grant gets shot watch for the little kid by him to cover his ears. Anticipation! My favorite parts-- When the plane chases Cary, "That plane is dusting crops where there ain't no crops"  and the art auction, "$2,000 for that chromo?" There just aren't actors like that anymore.

American Graffitti. Another Ron Howard Film, but also with Richard Dreyfuss, Harrison Ford and Cindy Williams. Wolfman Jack, too. With all the oldies in the background its like a musical. This is one where they shouldn't have done a sequel. The first one though was awesome. Great job George Lucas.

Star Wars. Great job out of George Lucas again deciding to hire Harrison Ford. . .again. I enjoy the old trilogy, just never got into the new trilogy. Might have been that darned jar Jar Binks. I don't know. Of the first trilogy I like them in that order, Star Wars, Empire, then Jedi. Not sure of those Ewoks, although the fight scene with Jabba is classic.

The last movie on this list. . . Rocky. Rocky was probably the first movie I remember seeing at a theatre. Sly Stallone, good job out of you pal. Now not on my next list is the last Rocky "Rocky Balboa" but I enjoyed all of the movies a lot. I thought 6 did a great job of tying them all together. and they even brought back Little Marie,  although its a different actress. Little Marie was actually in Rocky V at the end in the brawl. They were going to show what happens when you don't listen to Rocky, but it didn't get any play.

So there it is. . . Old movies round one. I probably forgot some-- and I didn't do sports movies-- that will probably be separate too.

40 til 40 May 7, 2012 "Steve Karsten"

"Steve Karsten"

I have been blessed to call so many people my friend. Sometimes that becomes a catch-22 when those people pass. It is inevitable. . . We are all going to die. I have lost a number of friends for one reason or another, and none of those have been easy to accept. The majority of those though have been by way of suicide. I do not condone suicide. Life is too short.

I miss the friends that took their own life. I wonder what might have been or what demons could've been so bad. In the end, though they had a choice. It was theirs, and I think they made the wrong one.

I have lost a couple other friends through no fault of their own. In each of their lives, they have helped save mine. Next week we will talk about the other, but today is Steve Karsten day.

I got to know Steve when I was a sophomore in high school. He was friends with Chris Crawford who called him "BA", short for Bubba. Over the years we had disagreements. He was a Michigan man. he liked all detroit sports when it came to Pros. He was an Iowa fan though so we were able to find common ground. To know Ba, was to love him. Whether it was going fishing, or watching a game or shooting pool. . . he did it with a smile and a sarcastic sense of humor and with Muscular Dystrophy.

Steve didn't choose to let it take him, He fought through. He outlived Doctors estimates and still had tons of fun along the way.  I have a hard time summoning all the words to describe this guy. I will just say that I live daily for his memory. Not a day goes by when I do not think of him. I know  there is a bunch of us who are the same way. He may physically gone, but he is looking over us.

Gone too soon. I wish those people who are about to pull a trigger, would take one more breath and think of Steve, who I know would love to be back shooting pool, playing poker, or sharing a 12er during a Hawkeye game.

40 til 40 May 06, 2012 "Go Pack Go!"

"Go Pack Go!"

It may not be breaking any new ground to reveal I love sports. I think that is pretty evident. Nor is my love for the Chicago Blackhawks, Chicago Bulls, and Chicago Cubs. Well we will be talking about those teams later on. Its Sunday and I am feeling kind of Sunday. In four months, football is BACK!

Spoiler alert. . . I am a Green Bay Packer fan. A big fan. All of my favorite teams were settled pretty much by the age of 2 or 3. I am asked often how a guy whose parents were from the south side of Chicagoland can like all Chicago teams except in football.  Short answer, I was born into it.

On my Dad's side of the family-- Great Grandfather Utech settled the family into the states up in Wisconsin. My Grandfather went to Wisconsin Whitewater in the late 30s and became a Packer fan. My Dad was born into it. He went to College at St. Norbert's in DePere, Wi, a suburb of Green Bay. He was a Peanut vendor for The Packers on Sundays while going to college. My Great Uncle was the clock operator for the Pack at that time. So, I was born into being a Packer fan.

The 70s were not a great time to be a Packer fan. All of the guys in elementary were mainly Cowboy fans since they were always on tv, or Steeler fans since they were racking up super bowls.  Green Bay was racking up losses. They did have a playoff season in '72 but otherwise nothing. 1978 I was pretty pumped, but a second half of the season collapse was climaxed by a damn tie to Fran Tarkenton and the Vikings. I was TICKED. no play-offs as the Vikings won the tiebreaker going 8-7-1. As a kid I really rode the highs and lows. mainly lows. Any glimpse of success, like the big trade for John Jefferson made me excited. I would play football int he backyard and try to emulate John Jefferson, James Lofton or my all-time favorite Packer, #24 Johnnie Gray.

In 1980, a story I have told before, but one of my favs was the Chester Marcol game. Packers-Bears wasn't on Tv, so we had to try to tune in WTMJ. . . a tough task in Newton Iowa. We listened to a staticy broadcast and in between crackles, the game went to Overtime and the packers were setting up for a field goal. I was practically groping the speaker in the living room trying to hear the outcome. That groping became a full on dry hump as it turned out that Alan Page had blocked the kick, but Chester got the rebound and raced to a game winning touchdown.

Funny how I cherish Packer Bear moments but in 1989 Majik Man to Sterling Sharpe in the instant replay game was great. The Packers went 10-6 that year but they lost a couple games they shouldve won and missed the play-offs.

Things were pretty bleak until Mike Holmgren and Ron Wolf started running things, and pieces such as Reggie White and Brett Favre came into the fold.

Winning that Super Bowl in 1996 was sweet. It marked years of waiting and the first time outside of the Bulls one of my teams actually won anything. It also is a metaphor for enjoying things when they occur. One never knows when that is gonna happen again. Damn Mike Prior and then John Elway ruined a repeat. Steve Young sent the Holmgren era and then it was a slow descent back to the middle. I never have and never will play a snap for Green Bay but I sure have cheered them all,

My one and only Packer game at Lambeau was in 2005. They lost to the Steelers, but seeing Brett Favre and having a moment walking out to the seats  like rudy's dad in "rudy" was priceless. The Packer HOF is awesome and I recommend that to any fan of football. They got one touchdown (thanks Samkon Gado) and getting to hear Todd Rundgren was super.

When Suzy and I got together, she couldve chosen to be a fan of any team but admittedly, I am glad she chose the green and gold and her favorite player of Clay Matthews. A big selling point in getting Suzy to go to Hawaii with me to the Pro Bowl was to see Clay in person. Of course, as fate would have it, Green Bay made the super bowl and those players didn't travel to Oahu. Oh well we still proudly supported the Pack. Suzy got to see them in person for the first time this year against KC ( I can really pick em). But we had a blast.

The Packers have nabbed a couple trophies in my lifetime. I hope they have a couple more in them, but football is changing. Its becoming more like Arena football and the CFL. I hope Packer management rolls with it.

I hope everyone has a passion in their life that they can attach to. For me its sports. I will ride those waves of emotion and continue to cheer loud. Go Pack Go!

40 til 40 May 05, 2012 "WHO'S READY FOR ROLLER DERBYYYYYYYYY?"

"WHO'S READY FOR ROLLER DERBYYYYYYYYY?"

As a youth, I knew what I wanted to be when I grew up. Play 1st Base for the Chicago Cubs. I had a backup job. If I couldn't be a player, I figured it would be time to take Harry Caray's job and I could announce for the Cubs. I have always had a knack for stats and although I didn't try things like "Joe Orsulak's name backwards is Skalusro," I felt I would be a great announcer.

My folks were quite supportive of my announcing aspirations. There were times during Iowa Basketball games when they would turn down the sound and let me announce. It was pretty fun calling out fouls on Uwe Blab. I had toys as a youngster, matchbox cars, star wars figures and what we called people. I took all of the people from my sisters houses and play sets and I would call games with them as the athletes.

Fast forward 25 years and I was the guy that for fun would pull up to the outdoor Brenton Skating Plaza in the winter and announce the pickup broomball games.

So, Back in the mid-2000s, I got a call from Michelle Reinier, or for those in the derby world, Jewels of Denile. She said she was into this cool roller derby stuff up in Wisconsin and it was all real. She said it was fast paced and that one minute you could be watching great roller derby action and another you could have a derby girl in your lap sharing your nachos. So Paxton Bennett and I ventured up there and we were hooked. The tailgating was great at Fast Forward. The afterparty was awesome but the bouts were simply amazing. Great times. We kept making the trip from Central Iowa up to Madison. I got to meet Bob Noxious and watch him announce this great "new" sport. Jewels also got me to start collecting wigs for bouts. First it was the Elvis wig, now I have 8 in the collection for any occasion.

Well we kept making trips, but roller derby was expanding. It wasn't just us who were fans. Teams were popping up everywhere. One of the guys that was in my Fantasy Baseball league, Kevin Rich, was in a play about roller derby. It was on reality TV.  And then the best news as peanut butter and chocolate were about to meet. . . Roller derby is coming to Central Iowa and they need an announcer!

It has been a HUGE honor to have been affiliated with the First ladies of Iowa Roller Derby, the Mid-Iowa Rollers since the beginning. It also is a huge honor to be part of such a great sport and I am humbled by all the wonderful people I meet along the way. yes there are some weeds. but it makes me appreciate all the flowers that comprise Derby.

This is not RollerJam Roller Derby nor is it the derby from the 70s. This is the real thing and its played at an All-Star level throughout the country.

Bob Noxious is as amicable now as he was all those years ago and now as my mentor who has helped me become the first Association of Flat Track Derby Announcers (AFTDA) certified announcer in Iowa. He is just one of the legions of people I can now call my friend.

But this blog isn't all about me and derby, although derby has allowed me to be the announcer I have always wanted to be and do it at a very high level. It has allowed me to travel all over and continue to meet great people. Saturday I am in Cedar Rapids to call a bout; Next Saturday Ottumwa followed a week later by Omaha. As I approach announcing 100 bouts in my career, it is important to point out Roller derby isn't about me. Nor is it about the refs. To me it comes down to two things and its why I love Roller Derby and continue to do what I do, Its about the gals (and now more than ever guys in the Mens leagues) who sacrifice for the sport and its about the fan who is there for the first time. It is my job to give them a clear picture of the sport and give them my all.

For those of you who haven't gone to a derby bout, check it out in whatever city you are in. Support all of the volunteers, skaters, refs and have a great time. Cheer for the lead jammer and buy some merch. Heck, maybe you will be hooked and want to volunteer on a team. But just don't take my word on it. Ask your local Derby gal.

40 til 40 May 04, 2012 "1983-84 Tigers"

"1983-84 Tigers"

The next three Fridays will be double blog Fridays. Each upcoming Saturday I will be out of town for roller derby so I will be doing those blogs on Friday. Friday nights a great night for blogging!

First, 2 post scripts from yesterday. One, Suzy's parents will be celebrating their 40th anniversary on June 17, 2012. That is the party date anyways. As far as I know they are not planning on blogging about their 40 years of experiences. Two, Suzy and I's wedding day was quite special for a myriad of reason, but two of them are no longer  with us. Shirle Huth, our pianist and our close family friend Cindy Hendrickson have since passed. They rearranged plans and treatments and their life to be in ours and it means the world.

Ok, so on to today's subject. No, not the same '84 Tigers that won the world series. We are going to talk about the Newton Little League Tigers. As a kid going growing up, I played all sports. I would even put my baseball glove on a baseball bat and play lacrosse against myself. But as sports go, the main ones I played as a kid was baseball, football and basketball. Of those the one I had the most skill in was baseball. I could field ok, couldn't run a lick and I could hit real well. When I say I couldn't run, I mean it. My Dad would yell, "Uncouple the coal car." I had a net in the back yard that I would toss a ball at which aided my fielding. Coach Stoffers baseball camps helped that, too. I still use those techniques when playing softball.

Hitting, Well I had a keen eye due to spending hours in the backyard throwing up a ball and hitting it to various places in the yard. I was pretty self sufficient as a youth. A bat, a ball and a yard. I was set. Sometimes I would be lucky and there would be a game going at Callison Park, Sandlot style. Bo Hollar ran that field.

In Newton in the 80's, Little League baseball was pretty big. Maybe not like sports as they are portrayed in movies, but pretty big. When one was ready, they could be drafted into the "majors" little league which was for 5 years or through the age of 12. I did a year of tee ball and 2 years of "minors" before hitting the majors. I was drafted onto the Tigers.

We were pretty good, as guys like Doug Sorenson, Ron Wylie, Chris Froah, George Selbher, Gary Etter, Scott Carpenter, Chad Burton, and Eric Brown were on the team. We managed to stay around .500 all year.

I had 2 events that are things I still think about. I through a no-hitter, which 6 innings against little leaguers, hey I will take it. Doug's older brother kept our stats and even tried to make sure no one mentioned it so I didn't get jinxed. On the other end of the spectrum, I gave up the only home run in my days of organized baseball. Jay Birchard took me deeeeeeep at Sunset Park which was all of about 100 feet. Still a legit dinger. For years I had wished I had never given up that blast over a tuft of grass that was to look like a fence. Anymore, its like, Hey, There are greater tragedies dude. Who cares.

So that was 1983. The Most fun night was after the Sunset Park games because that meant a grillout at the Sorensons.

Now, 1984 was a different story. We did lose Doug and Ron and Chris, but pretty much everyone else returned and added some new blood like Rob King and Greg Waggoner and Brian Cool. The Tigers were a force. We won the City title that year going 12-3. On top of that, we cherry picked Rod Mitchell and Lloyd Pickett and travelled to tournaments in Melcher-Dallas and Chariton and won those. The Melcher-Dallas one was especially cool as we got our first exposure to Chris Street. I am pretty sure he was 6 feet tall then and played for Mormon Trail.  This was definitely before he was moved to Indianola.

It was great times, and I don't care how young we were, but winning championships at any age is a good thing. Some people say it shouldn't be about winning. Well, we played the game hard and with sportsmanship and hey we won. I had been on plenty of other sports teams (mainly basketball) that lost. I will always remember that team and those guys. It was a special summer.

40 til 40 May 03, 2012 "Suzy U"

"Suzy U"

A long marriage is two people trying to dance a duet and two solos at the same time. ~Anne Taylor Fleming
I met Suzy Oxley on 2008. On a blizzarding day in February, 2008 I drove to Des Moines from Newton for two interviews. One was with a major bank, the other with a young gal by the name of Suzy Oxley.  Both have worked out great. How we ended up finding each other, well that is part of the story behind the story.

In April of 2006, I had gotten a promotion with my job at that time and was set to move to the Iowa City area. Then, following a going away party, over indulgence led to my staying around the Grinnell area for awhile longer. We will talk more about that day in particular later on in the 40.

2007 marked a year of returning to live in Newton, and of failed dating relationships. Friends, undaunted, pushed me to give internet dating a try. It had worked for them, so why not me. I got a three month subscription and tried. and tried and tried.

. . .and just when I was about to give up and let the subsscription expire a young gal by the name of Suzy (Ankenygal) stumbled on my page. It turns out she looked and passed on me, but all I knew is she had viewed my page. So I emailed her and we talked some. Come to find out she had a date scheduled so she was going to pass on me to concentrate on her budding relationship.

As luck would have it, fate was on my side as Suzy was stood up and her Friday was free. We spent that night talking and decided to go out on a date. Feb. 6, 2008. Skip's on Fleur in Des Moines was the site. Dinner was great. A few dates, a traumatic life experience, and lots of conversation later we decided to make a go of it. Being involved with derby and comedy, I had to make sure Suzy was cool with my hobbies.

If marriage were outlawed, only outlaws would have in-laws. ~Author Unknown
In August of 08 I made the plunge and gave up Newton to become an Ankeny guy with Ankeny Gal. Just over a year later, September 19, 2009, we got married. I am the lucky one. Suzy has a great family.

The other day I got a call from Suzy's Dad,"Hey, quick question... Who was the fella years back who had his woody cut off?"  Never a dull moment.

I am the lucky one to have found Suzy. We were both quite independent people. Now we are independent people who have each other.

Thank goodness, for driving intoxicated, driving through blizzards and some guy who decided to not go out ona date with Ankenygal.

Chuck

40 til 40 May 2nd, 2012 "Intro"

May 02, 2012

"Intro"

Everyone deals with stress differently. What is stress to one is another's joy. I am sure turning 40 is the same. June 12 I turn 40. Now I know nothing bad happens as soon as I turn 40 or anything like that, but is a halfway point in a couple ways. From graduating high school, a step into adulthood, its halfway to collecting social security. With the way lifespans are these days its also halfway until statistically I meet my maker.

I have been lucky to see many classmates go through 40 unscathed, even bask in its glory. Me, well we will see when the day gets here. For now, I plan to deal with this stress by sharing some events, people, life experiences and other musings that have shaped my first 40. Some will be very personal, some will be funny, some sad, but all will be a reflection of my life. I have been blessed to be on earth.

My family is pretty private, so there may not be a lot of mention of them, but I can assure all they are fine and doing great. I love my family very much and owe them a lot. If one chooses to read my blog daily, thank you. this means a lot to me as does everyone I have come in contact with during my life.

So on Day One, this will be more of a table setting or an introduction, an appetizer before the big meal. A little about me. I graduated from Newton High School. Class of 90. I currently work in the Presidential offices of the home mortgage department of a major American Bank. I also do stand up comedy and announce roller derby for Iowa's first derby team, the Mid-Iowa Rollers. I am quite proud of all my accomplishments on the microphone, whether its telling jokes or calling booty blocks.  More about all of that stuff later.  I am married to a wonderful wife, Suzy, and we have 2 furry kids, Lacey and Vinny, who are both running circles around me as I type. I enjoy sports of all kinds and am a passionate Iowa Hawkeye fan. I co host a podcast with Steve Myers, "Cy-Hawk Thoughts" giving the U of I point of view. When it comes to pay to play, most people know I am on the side of the Cubs, Packers, Bulls and Blackhawks.

so, thats it. . . Day one, done. Just setting the table. time to throw all of my 40 years in a bingo tumbler and see what come out daily.

Chuck