Rob_Haswell's Blog

Just a quick post to say we'll never give up... never surrender!



The crew have done things the hard way all season long so that's how they'll win this series!

My serious prediction is that IF the crew can get CC a game 5 he'll give them a series win. He'll be all rested and super fired up to get a win and erase that last outing!

I know it's a stereotype but as a Canadian I have hockey in the blood. By Canuck standards, I am not that much of a fan but I do enjoy the sport and wanted my son to at least give it a try. If there's anything to DNA and genetics, he'll have very little chance of being a super skilled player! That said, my father was a good player so maybe it just skips a generation!

But that's not what I wanted to point out here. My desire for Noah (and next year Nyla) to give hockey a try is conflicted by my deeply rooted thriftiness! The good news is that the fine folks at Ozaukee Hockey have procured some loaner equipment for their mini-mites this year to take the edge of the cost and truly the league isn't overly expensive when compared to other things like gymnastics or dance etc. However, the price of some things for the little player have soared! I mean they've jumped in price by exponential amounts compared to when I was a kid!

The biggest price craziness I saw was buying Noah a hockey stick. In 1977 when I was 6 you could get a stick for under 5 dollars and a really good stick for about 15! Of course back then they were basically tree limbs with a bend in them! Even when I was older and the higher tech sticks came out they were under 20 dollars and the basic stick was still around 5-10 bucks.

Noah's stick cost almost 25 dollars - and that's a Jr. stick! Now to be fair I could have paid as little as 15 dollars but that was a pretty basic stick. The price of Junior sticks at the store we went to (I won't say where but the name rhymes with sticks) went up to 100 bucks! A 100 bucks?! You'd better make it to the NHL for that!!!!

Okay, I am overreacting a bit. I have to admit today's sticks are amazing by comparison to what we had back in the 70s and early 80s. They weigh almost nothing - my old stick was heavier than most baseball bats - and they have special finishes and blades that make it easier to play! So I guess it makes sense they cost more. However, hockey is one of the most expensive sports and in a state where the sport plays a backseat to just about every other team sport, it's a hard pitch to those who are new to the ice.

Big time kudos to the brilliant minds at Ozaukee Hockey who made the effort to get loaner equipment for the mini-mites to get them into the game without breaking the bank! Especially at an age where they're all about hockey one day and a few weeks later they're wild about skateboarding or art!

If you're interested here are a couple of links to junior hockey in our area:

WAHA
Ozaukee Hockey

Favre vs Carson. That's a lop sided battle no matter what arena - comedic or sporting! But it's not my point. I'll get to that in a minute.

First, I have got to say it's amazing how this story exploded and just keeps on blowing up bigger and bigger. I knew it was big but last night when a friend of mine named Kelly, who's not a big football fan herself outside of THE Ohio State University football, blurted out in the middle of a visit, "What's the deal with Favre?!". She was more than curious she was befuddled, confused and I think a little peeved and she's only been in Wisconsin about as long as I have!

I bring it up to illustrate just how far reaching this story is and how almost EVERYONE has an opinion. Yes... even your local weatherman.

Now, I'm not a sports guy and I'll leave the arguing over what Favre has done for the Packers and what the Packers have done for Favre etc. to the TV Jocks on the far side of the building but I do have an opinion based on what I do for a living which is TV and weather.

The weather option isn't really relevant other than to say when we retire a hurricane name it STAYS retired.

However, my TV opinion is a little more thought out and this is where Johnny and Bret come into the picture.

Johnny Carson was one of the all time great TV personalities. Even I, a Letterman fan, feel that Johnny may have been the greatest of all time when it comes to the format of the late night talk show. He did it all from sketch comedy to stand up to desk interviews and nobody was better. Different maybe but never better.

When Carson decided to retire he took his time. He thought it out. He went out at the top of his game with his show still the dominant late night option. And when he took his final bow and handed over the reigns to Jay Leno that was it. He retired. He stood on his amazing record and took a seat in the audience of late night TV.

Now, I am NOT a Jay Leno fan for a variety of reasons, but can you imagine what would have happened and how Johnny would have looked if a few months before Leno's official debut Carson said... maybe I want to come back. Better than that, maybe I want to go over to Fox or ABC and do my show there? It might have been understandable after all, he was on stage night after night for decades and he could have cashed in huge! But it would have taken the shine off his image and many of his fans may not have stuck with him. It would also have been unfair to Jay Leno who, for better for for worse, earned the job as his replacement.

No, Carson retired and no amount of money, or insatiable itch to be on TV would have brought him back.

How much of this applies to Brett Favre?

I don't know.

Did Favre not take enough time to think it through before he retired? Maybe, only he knows that..

Does he want a big pay day? I very much doubt that as he has all the money he'd ever want and could make more retired than he would on the field.

I don't know how much of my Carson story applies other than I am confident that unlike the all time king of late night, Brett Favre isn't as clear on what a return will do to his long time image and standing as one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time.

And in a final thought, I want to make it clear that I do agree he is one of, if not the greatest QB that has ever played. Not just for his skill as a player but for his skill as a motivator and his amazing ability to light a fire in even the least likely football fan like me. Before I moved to Wisconsin I probably watched a game or two every season. Last year, I watched or listened to at least part of them all!

Just remember, the sequel is hardly ever as good as the original.

I've talked about this numerous times in the past both in this blog and on the air during Wake Up but just to recap ... I am about as athletic as a drunken three toed sloth. 

My father fancied himself a bit of a jock.  He was pretty good at hockey and held his own in most other sports but he was hoping for a son that would eclipse all that and shine on the field of sports battle.  As a result he was enthusiastic to say the least when I played baseball or hockey. 

Dad would scream and shout and make more noise than anyone cared to hear in the stands.  It wasn't a big deal in hockey because I was way down on the ice with a helmet on so I couldn't really hear it but in baseball it was a nightmare.  When it came to the great American pastime, this Canadian boy stunk and stunk badly! 

Point of clarification here - I played softball not baseball.  There were few if any of what we called "hardball" leagues in Canada at the time (1970s) and none in my area.

I make that point because even with a larger ball I wasn't much of a hitter. Short of playing with a beach ball, I wasn't likely to get a "big hit" but that didn't stop dear old Dad from shouting about a big hit.  His favorite was "you're due!   you're over-due!" which always made me cringe because essentially he was pointing out to my teammates as well as the opposing team that my batting average was just north of a big goose egg!  There were other cringe worthy calls like "get in the game", "where are you throwing?" and "dear lord stop picking dandelions!" Alright I made that last up but you get the idea.

All that being said, you'd think I'd sit quietly and cheer politely for my kids at t-ball right?  Wrong.  I can't seem to help myself!  I'm hooting and hollering just like dear old Dad!  Even borrowing some of his favorite lines like, "run it out" when the ball barely goes a foot or two or his classic "go go go".  Is it in the DNA or something?  Perhaps.

In an effort to break the cycle, I am much better ( I think ) at avoiding any cheers that point out the deficiencies of my kids athleticism unlike the old man.  But, I am still one of the noisy parents and I don't seem to care.

My point?  Well, I guess I understand my father a little better now.  I don't have the same desire to see my kids as stars on the field as he did but it doesn't seem to matter when it comes to being vocal in the stands.  Dad may not have made the best choices in what he said but now I understand why he couldn't keep quiet.  He was a father and the desire to tell the world "that's my kid" just can't be denied!  In a way, I'm impressed that he kept cheering even as it became more and more evident that I was more likely to win an Emmy or a Tony than a World Series or Stanley Cup.

I'm a little late (okay, a LOT late) in getting this posting up but I wanted to say a big CONGRATS to the 12 and under track team from Feith Family YMCA in Ozaukee!

The team competed in the Milwaukee Metro YMCA Tack Meet last weekend - know know as the Bossman Classic and took the silver medal!  The team was the defending champ so it was sad to hand over the big trophy but the kids from Kettle Moraine earned it in a tough race to the podium!

Also a big note of thanks and congrats the the ever-present Coach Pat who is a wonderful leader and huge asset to the Feith Family Y.  He never strays from the Y's motto of combining sports with moral character and put as much effort in teaching the kids how to run the relay as he did teaching them that boo's had no place in this event.  Well done.

If you watch Wake Up, you already know that I am no athlete so I am a bit of a fish out of water at these things but it was a wonderful day in the sun and my heart was pounding as we cheered on the Feith relay team to a near sweep of the event.  My son is just getting started and fell a bit short of making the podium for an individual ribbon but his face was just lit up when he got to put that silver medal around his neck as a member of Team Ozaukee!

I'll post a team pic later today.

Yes, I know it's a little sad that it took me two full seasons to get down to Miller Park but I finally got out to a game last night with my son and we had a blast!

What a great time for kids. 

The game wasn't exactly the kind kids like with lots of home runs and big hits - in fact there was only one run - but at least the Brew Crew won!

My son loved the new kids area with the racing sausages and he insisted on clocking his pitches with the radar gun twice!  He did pretty well for a 6 year old - 21mph fast ball!  Another 70 mph and he could be pitching in the bigs!  I'm not holding my breath.

Of course after the kids zone we had to have peanuts and Cracker Jack!

Side Note:  Is it me or are the Cracker Jack toys getting kinda lame!  I remember getting whistles or buttons or some other little toy.  Noah got a paper thing that you're supposed to stick on a pencil.  Huh?

Anyway...  We washed it all down with a WAY too big soda and spent some time going through his new Brewers baseball cards that the Police handed out as we walked in.

All in all, it was a great night and we'll be back soon!

What was your first Brewers game like?  Share your story here!

If you're a regular reader of my blog you already know I am an Admirals fans and try to get to as many games as a father of three can in a given season.  This year they are doing very well - even after their top goalie got called up to the NHL!

I took the whole family to the big game on Sunday against Houston - what a game!  Shoot out and everything!  Plus a big win!

So, I thought I'd share a picture my wife took of Nadia (our newest addition) at her first hockey game.

No, I, unfortunately, never had the pleasure or privilege of meeting Mr. Favre but he was a big part of sparking my interest in the Packers.

Before moving to Wisconsin, I had been a lukewarm football fan at best. I never had a chance to play the game much as a kid. Partly because the sun rises and falls on the hockey rink in Canada but also because our school was a rugby school because funding just wasn't there for football. I followed the Argos (CFL) and the Bills as the closest NFL team but the sport never really got my pulse going.

That changed when I moved here and it changed quite quickly.

My first full season following the Pack was during the same time that I was spending long hours renovating my basement. I would put the radio or the little portable TV on in the background and hammer away. The first few weekends, it was background noise. After a couple of games though, the hammering would pause at the snap would then intensify with either frustration or elation depending how the play went. I have never been a big sports fan so I even surprised myself when I noticed how much I was getting into the game.

By the end of this season I was jumping around, doing what we've called the "touchdown dance" with my kids as we watched the Packers in an amazing playoff run!

For me, Brett Favre was a HUGE part of catching Packer-fever. He was a joy to watch. He played the way we all dream of playing when we're tossing the football around in the backyard and doing our own play by play. He made it fun to be a fan and he made it easy to wear a cheesehead with pride!

Thanks Brett!

now I know I have Brewers Fever.

 

I was aware of it first when I started watching the specialty sports channels on my satellite that I have had for a long time but rarely if ever watched because I'm not really a huge sports fan but now I've gone to the next level.

 

Last night not only was I watching Fox Sports Wisconsin - gotta support the parent company - but after I saw the crew would win, I wanted to check the Cubs game on the other alt channel and that was blocked in my area which irked me to no end!

 

So now I've gone from not knowing what was on any of those extra sports channels to not having enough sports channels!  It's official, I have the fever and the only cure is a World Series Win!

 

By anyone's estimation, I am no athlete and as a result of my minimal or non-existant skills, I have never been a big sports fan but I must admit, I have caught Brewers Fever!

When it comes to sports, I have always rooted for the underdog, the little guy - being a little guy it's a given - but it's always more satisfying to watch David slay Goliath and there are numerous sports films to back my position!

Of course, Milwaukee and the Brewers aren't the littlest of the little guys but we're not the big dog either so of course, I am a Brew Crew fan and love it when they beat the Cubs!

It's a good time to be a Crew-backer too with the team in a race for the top spot and it was music to my ears and eyes this morning when I heard they scored another win and a full game lead in the division! Now they just have to keep it going!

Have you seen these shirts by the way ... what a hoot!

YOST SHIRT

Okay... my kid is a psychic! He was busy playing by himself in our basement and suddenly starts yelling "Packers Win!... Packers Win!"

My wife and I doubled over laughing because we weren't sure he even knew who the Packers were! Later that afternoon I popped on Fox 6 and what to wondering eyes should appear but a winning Packers team!

My son insisted on a watching "those Packer guys" for a while and he seemed to enjoy it but eventually Dora The Explorer won out.

So there you have it, the newest football prognosticator is a 4 year old from Ozaukee county! I'll let you know his picks for next week as soon as he has them ready! :-)

We had a bit of video this morning of a high school soccer fight.

I know it's easy to lose your cool and there were more than a few fights in my high school but it's just pathetic when student athletes lose their cool and start throwing fists! First of all, you're supposed to be the role models for the rest of the school, many eyes are on you and while some might be jealous of your celebrity status as a member of the schools hot team, many more look up to your and want to follow in your foots steps. So step up and set a good example! I am happy to report this video wasn't from Milwaukee.

My other point is this... you look really stupid fighting on video tape! Yes, every guy thinks he can throw a punch and look like John Wayne or Jean Claude Vandamme but the reality is you look more like Richard Simmons trying to swat a bee! My point? If you think fighting makes you a tough guy, you are so very wrong and the proof of that will come if you ever get caught on video!

For the record, the same holds for women just substitute looking like scene off of the Jerry Springer show for my Richard Simmons analogy and you get the same sad result!

PLAY NICE!