This summer has had its share of crazy turns of events in the world of professional sports but none more so than in the case of Brett Favre. Here's what we've got to say to the man after all this latest news:
We thought you'd put up your jersey for good, called it a day once & for all. But no, Brett, you still felt you had a statement to make & didn't really want to retire. In the eyes of the higher-ups in Green Bay, though, they took a different take on the situation so they let you go. After roughly 15 years in a dreaded green & yellow uniform - & just when we thought your career was over, done, see you later - it's the start of a new era. And unfortunately, the VIPs in GB added, you couldn't be part of it. With a young buck like Aaron Rodgers with so much to prove to us, why keep an old-timer like you around? We thought you were done with our organization, right? You said it yourself.
And yet Brett felt he wasn't done with anything - that is, playing football. Now that Green Bay showed him the door, a lot of folks would think he would just give up, enjoy the rest of his days either on the sidelines or as an NFL commentator. But now he's here in the heart of New York, in a Jets uniform, no less. Sure beats the Giants any day, true, but he could have cut a much better deal if he gave the matter some thought. The Jets have been the beasts of burden in their division for an eternity, the division's lower class so to speak - & with a team like New England always taking center stage every year, that's not surprising. But during the postseason, they got some sweet deals & a renewed sense of purpose. Question is, will Favre be a factor?
One only hopes so. Unseating the Pats from the top of their division is going to be a major stretch but then again the Jets' NFC hometown counterpart, the Giants, could show Favre a thing or two in how to play like real champions (& how to knock off Tom Brady & company while they're ahead). When the regular season begins, we'll see what stuff this year's team is truly made of. Until then, we won't be hearing any Jets fans fuming about their latest acquisition.
And yet I feel Favre could have done better in weighing his options, considering more closely the teams who wanted a shot at him (like say, Tampa Bay, whose offense closely mirrors the man's playing style). He deserved better than he ended up getting, but hey, such is life in the world of post & preseason dealing in the NFL.
And don't count on him throwing in the towel after Game 8.
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Getting started
In some of my last posts, I focused on fraternity recruitment & how necessary it is that everyone's prepared well in advance, before Rush Week so much begins. This one's for the new member/pledge educators, who also shouldn't be on vacation when it comes to laying the groundwork for this Fall's Pledge program. Here are some key guidelines which need to be taken into full consideration well before the PEs/NMEs receive this fall's latest class of new guys:
(1) If some of the stuff in question for this fall's pledging program is highly questionable, or done only to get the active brothers' kicks, it shouldn't be done - enough said.
(2) If we're perpetuating some of our trademark stunts from yore just for tradition's sake - "Oh, I had to do it so these new duders should too" - we should shut those antics on down.
(3) The new duders are aspiring to be chapter & with that Fraternity members, not our slaves.
(4) Are we designing our pledge programs just to make our prospectives "good pledges," rather than make them good brothers?
(5) see #4: Are we formulating our Fall pledge programs to determine how much our new guys truly want to become members of our fraternity instead of giving them the time of day to answer any questions they might have along the way? In either case, we shouldn't create programs which are in total variance or at cross purposes with everything our founders stood for.
(6) Don't make the new members do things you wouldn't envision yourself doing - seriously.
(7) You can't force unity out of the pledge classes which'll come your way: that's one of the premises for why we've got cliques/caste systems within this chapter or that, chapters where the brothers know little or nothing about any of their own or where some of the brothers are far more close knit than most. Unity should arise as the result of shared experiences, not out of fear or intimidation.
(8) As a pledge/new member education, one of our roles is not to disorient the duders under our wing. In fact, one of the key roles any PE/NME has in this program or that is to give the prospectives time to fully absorb, remember & understand the important lessons which the pledging program provides in spades, Initiation & Ritual. What are we gaining when some of the new guys are extremely anxious to get their stint as pledges over & done with? Well, their view on the chapter & with that the more important stuff about our Fraternity is going to be pretty fuzzy later on, so keep that in mind.
(9) Our pledge programs should consistently operate with the spirit & ideals of our Ritual, Ritual Statutes & Governing Laws - no more, no less than this.
(1) If some of the stuff in question for this fall's pledging program is highly questionable, or done only to get the active brothers' kicks, it shouldn't be done - enough said.
(2) If we're perpetuating some of our trademark stunts from yore just for tradition's sake - "Oh, I had to do it so these new duders should too" - we should shut those antics on down.
(3) The new duders are aspiring to be chapter & with that Fraternity members, not our slaves.
(4) Are we designing our pledge programs just to make our prospectives "good pledges," rather than make them good brothers?
(5) see #4: Are we formulating our Fall pledge programs to determine how much our new guys truly want to become members of our fraternity instead of giving them the time of day to answer any questions they might have along the way? In either case, we shouldn't create programs which are in total variance or at cross purposes with everything our founders stood for.
(6) Don't make the new members do things you wouldn't envision yourself doing - seriously.
(7) You can't force unity out of the pledge classes which'll come your way: that's one of the premises for why we've got cliques/caste systems within this chapter or that, chapters where the brothers know little or nothing about any of their own or where some of the brothers are far more close knit than most. Unity should arise as the result of shared experiences, not out of fear or intimidation.
(8) As a pledge/new member education, one of our roles is not to disorient the duders under our wing. In fact, one of the key roles any PE/NME has in this program or that is to give the prospectives time to fully absorb, remember & understand the important lessons which the pledging program provides in spades, Initiation & Ritual. What are we gaining when some of the new guys are extremely anxious to get their stint as pledges over & done with? Well, their view on the chapter & with that the more important stuff about our Fraternity is going to be pretty fuzzy later on, so keep that in mind.
(9) Our pledge programs should consistently operate with the spirit & ideals of our Ritual, Ritual Statutes & Governing Laws - no more, no less than this.
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
In a matter of time, school will be back in session & with it all the anxieties, first-week jitters which are part & parcel of the college experience.
In the meantime, folks are formulating on what furniture, clothes, & other whatnot to bring along for their journey back to State U; back @ the frat house rooms are being tweaked up, painted...duders getting ready for the very first day back in town & what better way to be ready for Fall 2008 than to have their rooms all decked out in advance.
In the world of Fraternity Recruitment, this is no time to go to sleep. This is not time to sit back & twiddle one's thumbs until Rush Week arrives. This is serious business & thanks be to online networking sites like Facebook & Myspace, we've got the headstart on letting folks know about a perfect opportunity to go Greek, right?
True, we do have the running start - & not only that, we're giving the incoming freshmen (& other undergraduates who want to go Greek this fall) plenty of options to work with in terms of finding the right house to join. But at the same time, we shouldn't leave this issue well enough alone; we need to keep in touch with the prospectives while we're ahead so when Rush Week comes they're not left in the lurch on which houses they should check out. As anyone can see, Fraternity Recruitment is a yearlong process & at this time of year, our mindset should be no different.
At this time of year, getting the word out on our houses is pretty important & with that in mind, letting the prospectives know the whole truth & nothing but the whole truth about Sigs/SAE/Delts/&c. Are we ready?
In the meantime, folks are formulating on what furniture, clothes, & other whatnot to bring along for their journey back to State U; back @ the frat house rooms are being tweaked up, painted...duders getting ready for the very first day back in town & what better way to be ready for Fall 2008 than to have their rooms all decked out in advance.
In the world of Fraternity Recruitment, this is no time to go to sleep. This is not time to sit back & twiddle one's thumbs until Rush Week arrives. This is serious business & thanks be to online networking sites like Facebook & Myspace, we've got the headstart on letting folks know about a perfect opportunity to go Greek, right?
True, we do have the running start - & not only that, we're giving the incoming freshmen (& other undergraduates who want to go Greek this fall) plenty of options to work with in terms of finding the right house to join. But at the same time, we shouldn't leave this issue well enough alone; we need to keep in touch with the prospectives while we're ahead so when Rush Week comes they're not left in the lurch on which houses they should check out. As anyone can see, Fraternity Recruitment is a yearlong process & at this time of year, our mindset should be no different.
At this time of year, getting the word out on our houses is pretty important & with that in mind, letting the prospectives know the whole truth & nothing but the whole truth about Sigs/SAE/Delts/&c. Are we ready?
Monday, August 4, 2008
Still going strong
A week ago, the Cubbies might have been down, on the verge of going out. In fact, it felt like the latter half of 2007 all over again: Milwaukee (with CC Sabathia their latest acquisiton - how sweet of a deal is that?) & St. Louis competing with the Cubs for the top spot in the division. Eventually, the bottom fell out for St. Louis & it was a two-horse race between the Brewers & Chicago from then forward.
But now, saving any late season suspense, the Cubs are once again at the top of the NL Central's perch & loving every minute of their stay there. And after a four-game sweep of the Brewers @ Milwaukee (!!), they deserve to be loving life as their division's leaders. The next question is, can they sustain their momentum for the remainder of 2008?
Of course they can. Like last season has shown, Chicago has been in this position before & they know what's at stake. They've known what it's like to be in an offensive funk & hoping they could get out of it just in time for a key 3/4 game stint against, say, St. Lou or Milwaukee. They know firsthand that their hold on the division is a precarious one. Just ask their crosstown nemesis, the White Sox (who BTW are a half-game behind Minnesota in the AL Central).
But at the same time, the Cubbies have the offensive firepower to put any pitching corps to sleep early. And as far as their own pitching goes, with Zambrano & Dempster leading the way, how can you go wrong? The key for Chicago at this juncture on both ends of the field is to keep playing disciplined baseball - not to rest on their laurels, not to get complacent, just keep playing smart, no-nonsense baseball. It's not beyond them. A few games ahead of Milwaukee, one only hopes that Chicago not solely stays the course; one also hopes that the Cubbies keep playing up to their usual potential - in a word, that would be awesome.
But now, saving any late season suspense, the Cubs are once again at the top of the NL Central's perch & loving every minute of their stay there. And after a four-game sweep of the Brewers @ Milwaukee (!!), they deserve to be loving life as their division's leaders. The next question is, can they sustain their momentum for the remainder of 2008?
Of course they can. Like last season has shown, Chicago has been in this position before & they know what's at stake. They've known what it's like to be in an offensive funk & hoping they could get out of it just in time for a key 3/4 game stint against, say, St. Lou or Milwaukee. They know firsthand that their hold on the division is a precarious one. Just ask their crosstown nemesis, the White Sox (who BTW are a half-game behind Minnesota in the AL Central).
But at the same time, the Cubbies have the offensive firepower to put any pitching corps to sleep early. And as far as their own pitching goes, with Zambrano & Dempster leading the way, how can you go wrong? The key for Chicago at this juncture on both ends of the field is to keep playing disciplined baseball - not to rest on their laurels, not to get complacent, just keep playing smart, no-nonsense baseball. It's not beyond them. A few games ahead of Milwaukee, one only hopes that Chicago not solely stays the course; one also hopes that the Cubbies keep playing up to their usual potential - in a word, that would be awesome.
Who Would've Known?
I've always had a love for reading. At the same time, I've always had a fetish for used books & going to used bookstores to find cool reads. One book which has constantly evaded my grasp - & BTW, this is one book I'd recommend for you to go check on out - is Marcuse's Eros and Civilization. Each time I'd go to a used bookstore it was like no dice; I knew I'd stumble on to it eventually but when? Time & time again the very book I wanted to get seemed to be an elusive find, available yet in hiding as if to say to me, "Maybe next time. I'll slip up then & I'll be yours for the taking."
Just a short while ago I found not only Eros and Civilization but also An Essay on Liberation while I was at it. This goes to show that I'm not only a lucky sonofabuck when it comes to snatching up some awesome reads; it's just one aspect of a man who wants to keep learning & keep soaking up knowledge like a sponge. And I'm feeling pretty ecstatic, to tell you the truth.
Just a short while ago I found not only Eros and Civilization but also An Essay on Liberation while I was at it. This goes to show that I'm not only a lucky sonofabuck when it comes to snatching up some awesome reads; it's just one aspect of a man who wants to keep learning & keep soaking up knowledge like a sponge. And I'm feeling pretty ecstatic, to tell you the truth.
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