Rest in peace, dear, sweet mojo

we said "good bye" to dear, sweet mojo, our 7yo rescued chihuahua. he had a recurrence of stones and we didn't want him to be in any pain. the last time was awful for everyone involved. 

it's been a sad day for the kaufs that was made a little better by the outpouring of support from friends and family. thank you all the texts, calls, notes. 

I'm happy for the time we had with mojo, and I want to focus on that instead of how sad it makes me that the house is too quiet without his "twinkle toes" on the hardwood floors. 

we came home from dinner tonight and as I walked in, I said "hey, mo" like I've seemingly always done. I can't wait until i stop doing that. but I hope it takes a while. 

when we first rescued him from an awful, abusive house on Father's Day nearly six years ago, he was so scared (and scarred, I'm sure), he wouldn't come near us. eventually, he came around and became a regular on the couch with all of the kaufs, or whatever house guests he chose to whore himself out to. :-). all you needed was a warm lap and he would "let you" pick him up and pet him while he sat on you.

he couldn't hear too well and was probably blind to a large degree. he had an awful bark - more like a high-pitched firehouse siren as it's getting revved up. his breath stunk and his teeth were awful. he had seizures a few times a year. 

but we all worked hard to play to mojo's strengths, and it was beginning to pay dividends for the whole family. things were looking up for the pup. he had lost a ton of weight (from 12+ to 8ish lbs. think about that as a percentage. it's a lot). he was spunky and spry. we would "roughhouse" (me just petting him vigorously) and run around the house.

after he walked away from the initial stone incident unscathed, I really thought he was going to be here for the long haul. wishful thinking. denial of the fact that I knew if the stones returned we'd have to put him down. regardless, I got to a place where i no longer regularly feared for his well being because of his precarious state of physical health. my heart is broken. 

the children had the chance to say "good bye" this morning before school. i think carson, our nearly 6yo son, is just a bit too young to grasp fully what exactly has happened. he's been great, however, for comic relief, and has developed quite a fascination with cremation. a little odd, but whatever. 

our 9yo daughter Lucia had grown so close to mojo in the past year. her older brother. the one, she said toinght, she could turn to when no one else understood. so naturally, she was devastated when she came home from school and asked "where's mojo?" the shrill of her crying will take a while to leave my head. such pain and sadness. i couldn't squeeze her hard enough. i couldnt make this go away. my heart broke all over again.

so we all vascillate between telling funny stories about mojo and bawling our eyes out over mojo. 

check out our boy:

https://vimeo.com/m/24625140.

best three songs to start a CD

vs.

i rarely ever listen to "albums" as the songs are presented any longer ... i just hit "random" on my iphone and let the songs play ... sometimes, i'll pick an artist but still play the songs on random ... also have tons of "greatest hits," which makes me familiar with the songs but not necessarily the albums from which the songs come.

sooooooo, i was driving gina's car the other day and the dave matthews band's second studio album "Crash" was in the CD player (big shock there). I listened to the first three songs in the order in which they are presented - "so much to say," "two step" and "crash into me" - and was blown away - borderline spiritual experience sort of stuff. Caveat: i am a huge dave fan. but the depth of the lyrics and way the ensemble comes together are amazing.

So it got me thinking about what other "albums" began with such epic-ness ... until now, my no-brainer for an opening three songs has been "Mental Jewelry," the 1991 debut album by Live. That album opens with "Pain Lies on the Riverside," "Operation Spirit (The Tyranny of Tradition)" and the piece de resistance "The Beauty of Gray." "Mental Jewelry" doesn't just start with three great songs to open the cd - it's a seminal, groundbreaking piece of work in its own right when looked at in its entirety ... the boys from york gave us the OK to rock again and forget the 80s hairband craze ... what makes "mental jewelry" most impressive is that it is the first three songs on live's FIRST album ... hello, live, welcome to the machine!

i'm still going with live as my top three songs to open a CD but after listening to "crash," i've got a second favorite.

what are your favorite first three songs to start an album? do you even listen to albums in the order in which they're presented any longer? inquiring minds want to know ...

Bitter sweet?

So i'm sitting here rooting on the phillies as they take a 2-0 lead in what could be the deciding game of the world series. Philadelphia's first championship in 25 years; the phils' first in 28 years. i'm stoked, really ... but i'm thinking, "damn, why couldn't it have been the eagles?"

i moved to the Philadelphia area in the mid-70s and followed the phils religiously when i was a boy - 1980 was pretty much my introduction to baseball and i was hooked. after the '83 series, the phils became awful and like any good fare weather fan, I lost interest until '93. i was captivated again - could it be? a title? a parade? Hello, Joe Carter. falling prey to a clever marketing scheme, I was persuaded to split a sunday season tix package in '94 - the year of the strike. but tickets went unused weeks before that happened.

It was about that time that my passing interest in the eagles moved into something more - i won't say obsession, but Gina might. I went in on season tickets, which were easy to get then because the birds were just awful. It was more about spending time with friends and family. and having a reason to party on sunday, too, i guess.

and as big 5 and Andy came on the scene, they ascended. like a meteor. and i poured every ounce of my fandom into the birds. the highs were really high, but man, you didn't want to be around me after a loss. I was unapproachable, physically and mentally beaten down.

and they made the super bowl. i can remember digging my car out of the snow on Parrish St. - after a snow plow plowed me in - and listening to WIP, bursting with excitement. how could it really be two weeks away? we can take NE, right? my brother zack and I were two of those crazies who made the trek to Jacksonville on the off chance we would get tickets. we didn't but it was still a great experience.

but right now, it's all about the phils taking us to the mountain top. GO PHILS! Can't wait for the parade, which we're taking our kids to - because you just never know when the next one will happen!

Conference USA - Week 7

EPark Fighin' Quakers (131.75) at Chicago Coyotes (73.75)

(MyFantasyLeague.com Fantasy Times Sources - Oct 20, 2008) In a week 7 Conference U.S.A. rivalry, EPark Fighin' Quakers embarrassed a hapless Chicago Coyotes team by a score of 131.75 to 73.75, extending the winning streak for EPark Fighin' Quakers to 3 games. With their 131.75 points, EPark Fighin' Quakers is now the proud record-holder of the 19th-highest weekly point total in league history. EPark Fighin' Quakers were led to their 58.00 point victory by a 24.00 point effort from the Chicago Bears Defensive Team. With this performance, the Bears was the number 2 ranked defensive team for week 7. They also got help from a 24.00 point effort from Dominic Rhodes, who snuck past the Green Bay Packers defense for 73 rushing yards and 2 rushing tds in addition to 41 receiving yards. The Quakers pulled off a mid-week trade, which landed Marion Barber and Sammy Morris, in return for Brett Favre, Darren McFadden and Thomas Jones. As a result, greybeard Kerry Collins took the reins of the offense and didn't hurt the team. Kurt Warner returns behind center next week. "We dodged a bullet against a very capable Coyotes team," EPark Fighin' Quakers coach Kevin Kaufman said. Chicago Coyotes were helped out in a losing cause by a 21.00 point effort from Ben Roethlisberger, who got by the Cincinnati Bengals defense for 216 passing yards and 2 passing tds. With this performance, Roethlisberger was the number 4 ranked quarterback for week 7. They also got help from a 14.00 point effort from Vincent Jackson, who snuck past the Buffalo Bills defense for 42 receiving yards and 1 receiving td in addition to 31 rushing yards. "It's going to be a long plane ride home," Chicago Coyotes coach Kryss Peterson said. This brings the record for EPark Fighin' Quakers to 5-4, and drops Chicago Coyotes to a record of 5-4. Coming up in week 8, the 5-4 Boston Deans are at EPark Fighin' Quakers, where EPark Fighin' Quakers are an early 12.4-point favorite, while Chicago Coyotes are at the 5-4 Parma Pink Flamingos, where Parma Pink Flamingos are an early 7.5-point favorite.

24 - My new TV addiction

When i was home this summer recovering from West Nile virus-induced meningitis, i became addicted to the TV show 24. What an incredible show. the concept, first of all, is mind-blowing, then there's the plot and its twists and characters. I sort of overlook the massive body count jack bauer leaves in his wake just because i know it's fiction. On every level, the show does it for me. (great, EXACTLY what i need is another TV addiction to add to Lost).

I was getting DVDs every third day via netflix (great service, btw, BIG fan). I was like a crack addict running up to the mailbox every day to see if my next "hit" had been delivered. And once it was, i went directly to the basement and the DVD player. Sitting and watching eight episodes at a time, i'd get into a transfixed state, drool on my chin - but hey, i enjoyed my buzz ...

Kiefer Sutherland as Jack is such an interesting character, a complex character, almost an anti-hero. So haunted on so many levels. So driven by doing the right thing long-term that he forgoes the right thing short-term. "Sure I'll torture my brother, just so long as i can save the country from nukes" ... "sure, I'll get addicted to heroine if it's going to bring down a drug cartel with terrorist connections" ... that sort of thing.

but he's always got the greater good's interest in mind. ALWAYS. Even though he's got one really good reason to be driven by revenge - his job caused the death of his wife. But he rises above it. I'd hate to take a peek into that sub-conscious.

So often, he shouts, "trust me," or offers "I give you my word" and you have to believe him.

the supporting cast is just as awesome. It's a veritable who's who of television actors - all turning in believeable performances in this completely unbelievable scenario. the interplay of the different plots keeps me glued. You know they're all going to intersect, but how and when?

One of my favorite parts of the show is the very end, at about 56 minutes after the hour when the screen splits into many different scenes and then goes to one for "The Kicker," a piece of information that totally changes what you thought was really happening.

I'm caught up on seasons 1-3 and 6. Yes, i'm such an addict that i couldn't wait for netflix and decided to watch the six freebies of season six and but the rest from iTunes. So i'm looking forward to "Redemption" in November and season 7 in january.

JACK is BACK. woo hoo! let's see what sort of mayhem he can cause this time around.

Money, money, money ... HUH?

Allow me to rant for a moment ...

Since when is personal financial accountability optional? I'm genuinely sorry for the people who are stuck with bad mortgages, but seriously, if you make $30k a year, what makes you think you can afford a half-million dollar McMansion?

That people who over-estimated their worth or lack a sense of fiscal reality are going to get a free pass gets my irish up ... Gina and I bought a house in the suburbs that was a little out of our price range, but we knew if we were smart about our finances, we would be OK ... and we are. I want a bailout, too, tho. Why are people who consistently pay their mortgage on time being punished for being fiscally responsible? IT DON'T MAKE NO SENSE!

I understand that it's for the good of the entire economy, but why are we here in the first place?

When Birds Attack, Attack ... Then Attack Some More

It wasn't pretty, but the birds handled the steelers, 15-6, on Sunday to move to 2-1 on the season. it was really a day for the defense and punter Sav Rocca - yes, the punter. the game had the feel of an NFC East smackdown.

The Defense rang up nine sacks, but had at least four or five others in their grasp that didn't go down as sacks b/c of penalties (Trent Cole facemask) or the fact that Big Ben was able to make it back to the line of scrimmage after feeling the pressure.

all that pressure? let's thank Asante Samuel ... with a lockdown corner, D coordinator Jim Johnson is able to send the house as much as he wants. How about that run defense? just sick. No. 1 in the NFL by nearly 20 yards! Props to the LBs Gaither, Bradley and Gocong. And No. 4 overall - even withe crazy MNF game at Dallas. Just wow ... And Brian Dawkins can still play the game. He may be a step slower, but he's got the savvy to make up for it. that strip and sack on Big Ben was incredible.

oh, and Sav R0cca? all he did was control the steelers' field position for the entire fourth quarter. When the birds went to a more conservative game plan in the second half and weren't moving the ball, Rocca launched punts of 64, 54 and 37 yards , pinning the Steelers back at their their 30-, 6-, and 7-yard lines, respectively.

the offense opened hot, hot, hot ... then hunt fumbled (on what looked like a helmet to helmet hit), westbrook went out, don left for a series, LJ was sidelined. Oh, and they started the game with out their all pro guard Shawn Andrews - and their top returning receiver Kevin Curtis. good teams find ways to win and they found a way to win. It would've been easy to fold up the tents and say screw it, we can't win, but they didn't. Pride and guts, for sure.

Reggie Brown's triumphant return? zero catches for zero yards. don looked his way twice, but it didn't look like Reggie expended too much effort in trying to catch the ball. same as it's always been with him ... give him a chance to step up and he'll drop it (pun intended).

the team has proven to me that they can adapt to the type of game being played ... The are competitive if the game is smash mouth or a shootout.

Think about it - the birds are one botched handoff from being 3-0.