Where has the time gone?

I've been messing around on my macbook(thanks tpsd) waiting for Boardwalk Empire(Sunday night on HBO is out of this world btw) to come on at 8.  I've been going through my usual url run of Yahoo fantasy sports, gmail, school mail, msu athletics, recruiting forums.  I'm contemplating setting up my Itunes.  But as I got bored with the same ole same ole surfing, I said wait a minute, I used to write a blog.  It's been so long since I wrote one, May to be exact.  I used to love doing it every day but working is harder than not working so it makes it tough to get motivation to write it after teaching all day.  That being said I'm probably going to make a promise here that I can't keep.  I probably shouldn't but what anyone that reads this has to realize is that, these blogs mean alot more to me than they do to you.  That might be hard to believe, but I use them as a getaway and a reassurance.  I'm trying to cover everything that has ever gone through my head.  I know, gonna take a while.  But hopefully by the time I'm 30 I can look back and say hmmm what did that particualar blog teach me.  How did I look at then differently than I do now?  Anyway, I don't have any specific topic I'd like to touch on tonight.  But I'd like to update my life since my last blog post.  Man has a lot changed with me since May.  You probably know by now that I taught Special Ed and coached baseball at Shannon High School last spring.  It was an awesome experience, my first real job.  I'm forever in debt to the Lee County School District for giving me that opportunity.  Once school was over, I started up with American Legion baseball like I do every summer.  Boy did I not have a clue how this summer would end.  When Kirk and I picked this team of 18 players, we knew we had a chance to be really good.  But I feel that way every summer and I'm sure he does too.  We had the usual challenges that we do every summer, and we sure had our ups and downs.  But we had a group of young men that had that "it" that every coach dreams of having.  Truth be told we didn't have just a few superstar players, we had a 18 players that knew there role on a great team.  If you don't already know by now, we finished our season as the 2nd best team in the country.(unofficially of course because legion doesn't do rankings)  We won our State Championship over a really tough Pontotoc team, went to Minden, LA for the Mid-South Regional and won there, then went to the American Legion World Series in Shelby, NC.  It was an experience that I will never forget.  We played at a level that I have never seen a team play at.  Against the toughest competition in the country, we stood toe to toe all the way through the tournament.  We eventually lost to Eden Prairie, MN in the National Championship 5-4 in 13 innings.  It still stings me everyday, because I think we were the better team, but they made one more play than we did and I tip my cap to them for the battle and their great sportsmanship.  I'll forever share a bond with that team as long as I live.  Thanks guys.  What's next?  We'll strap it back on next summer and try to do it again.  In the process of all this awesome baseball, I was also in the mix for a job at my alma mater, Tupelo High School.  I've been blessed with that job.  I'm still behind on a lot of things but I do give my very best effort everyday.  I am currently teaching job skills math(Special Education) and assisting a good friend of mine(Harris Faucette) with the Boys Soccer team.  It is truly a treat to be able to try to give back to a school that gave so much to me.  Sure there are challenges and I face them everyday but tell me a working environment where there's not a challenge.  One of my best friends uses a saying that I love. "If it was easy, everyone would be doing it".  This quote says to me that if you work hard you will be rewarded.  I think you get the result of your effort in everything you do, and I strive to do just that.  To top all this off, I'm buying my first house right now.  I'm still finalizing everything, but I'm inching closer to being truly on my on very soon.  Now this doesn't mean I'm sick of living at home.  I do enjoy it.  A lot of things are easier because of it.  I don't want to be labeled as one of those people that can't do anything without their mother, so I look forward to the challenge.  I will miss being with my Mom though.  I'm sure she'll cook a couple nights a week just to get me to come home.  And of course I will.  Its also the best time of year for a guy like me.  MLB playoffs, College Football, and the start of Basketball keep me grinning ear to ear.  Also the best shows on tv air in the fall so that keeps me occupied in the evenings.  Plus soccer is about to pick up.  So you could say that I'm ridiculously busy.  That being said I still try to make time for the important things in life: relationships with friends and family.  I love you all and don't hesitate to call if you need anything or just wanna make small talk.


It's good to be back blogging.  Thanks for reading folks,
McKinley

Life goes in Cycles

The last month or so has seen some highs and lows for me, as well as my region, the country and the world.  I haven't blogged since Spring Break.  I'm so tired at the end of the school day that I don't fell like doing anything. I thank the lord that I only have 11 days until summer break starts.  However, I feel like being productive for more than 9 hours today.  The title of this blog is life goes in cycles.  I truly believe this.  In the past 7 weeks I have witnessed triumphs and tragedies.  MSU's baseball team have put themselves in position to have a shot at postseason play and I'm very excited about that.  Full time baseball season is heating up and it's my favorite to be involved in.(Go Braves and 49ers) I had a blast at Super Bulldog Weekend with friends.  I'm saving money, and doing well financially(for a school teacher).  I bought a new truck from my Dad and if you know me well, then you know how thankful I am to not have to fear for my life when I get in my car anymore.  I'm in the process of looking for a new house.  Things have been good for the most part.  But, when the Tornado ripped through the southern part of the country a few weeks ago and Bid Laden was killed, I was reminded of some old song lyrics. "You gotta take the good with the bad, smile with the sad, love what you've got and remember what you had."  As I watched the President's address about the killing of Bin Laden, I was definitely in the majority.  I thought to myself "We Got Em".  It took me a minute to realize this was wrong of me.  While I do think of the families whose loved one's lives were taken by this man, I can't help but think killing altogether is not right and that's what brought Bin Laden's death all along.  Now, I'm not liberal enough to think that war is unnecessary but, how can killing someone ever be justified.  You'd have to criticize the first person to ever kill another person.  Off of that soapbox.  The tornadoes were tragic.  Plain and simple.  I'm sure the residents of Smithville and Tuscaloosa are saying why us?  I've said it before myself.  But you know who else said why us?  The people who are there to help get them back on there feet.  I'm not making light of the situation.  I can't say I know how they feel because I don't.  But there will be better days for those affected by the storms.  I'm a firm believer that things happen for a reason and God allows them to happen.  I've been on the good side and bad side of many different situations that life brings.  God has been on my side through each of them.  I think we ask him for too much when times are tough and thank him too little when times are good.  That's our problem, we have free will, we have too many questions, when the answer is inside of us.  I consider myself a Christian and an American and I want to start reminding myself how strong and capable I am of doing anything and overcoming anything I put my heart and mind into.  There's so much give and take in this life and you only get one shot at it.  There will be peaks and valleys, highs and lows, fears and hopes.  But if you are faithful, hopeful and full of love you can enjoy your life and make life better for those around you. 

Thanks for reading,

McKinley

I've Got Spring Break beating St. Pattys Day in My Bracket

There's a good bit going on this week....particularly today.  Obviously, because it's 11 AM, you know that I'm not teaching today.(Praise Jesus!)  It is Spring Break after all and I'm psyched about it, but it is already half way gone.  Looking back at all the Spring Breaks I've ever had, this one is tied for the best ever.(06' was magical)  I have done nothing this week but fill out my brackets(get to that shortly), play golf and watch high school baseball.  It might not sound like much to you but to me I couldn't have asked for anything else.  Now I know a great deal of people who like to go to the beach, but I've finally realized that I'm just not one of them.  Have I had fun at the beach?  Of course I have, but I'm more of a homebody or mountain type.  I think that spring break has gotten out of control in terms of generic activities that take place at the beach.  For instance: It's apparently a must to play drinking games all week and get as drunk as possible.  It's also a must to have a beach game set up(football, frisbee, or the little bean bag thingy game).  Each SEC School will be clearly represented on the beach because I guess it's cool to let people know "Hey this is the Auburn section if you wanna hang out or fight." You have to go to the hottest night club around.  I'm just not really into that stuff as I was once.  If I had to go to the beach now, I'd be more concerned with where I'm going to eat and I'd also try to find a more exclusive activity like sailing or something.  Anyhow, I've never appreciated a spring break as much as the current one.  As a teacher, I think we need the break as much as the students. 

As for St. Patricks Day, I don't really have much to say.  As of about 7 minutes ago I knew very little about the holiday, but I decided to wikipedia scearch it and found out a few things.  The first actually color to represent St. Patricks day was blue.  The wearing of the green actually just meant to wear a shamrock on your clothing.  The month of March is actually declared Irish-American Heritage month.  I'm not going to continue to bore you with facts, so I'll just get to what I really associate with this day.  As long as I've been alive I have associated St. Patricks Day with luck.  I remember as a kid, we looked for 4 leaf clovers and were told that if you find one you'll have luck for the rest of your life, among other unfathomable wishes.  I never found one, but I do believe in luck.  Anyone that gambles definitely believes in it.  Anyone that is associated with sports definitely believes it(ex. Butler Basketball 2010, Fresno State Baseball 2009).  I've heard many people say in my lifetime that sometimes it is better to be lucky than good.  I couldn't agree more.

Lastly, today is a special day for most competitive Americans.  All week we've filled out our brackets, we've crunched the numbers and weighed our odds.  Today is the true beginning of March Madness.(I don't count that play-in game crap.)  The team I root for is sitting at home this year(didn't even get an NIT bid) and to be quite frank, that's exactly where they deserve to be.  As for the tournament itself, I don't know if there is a more exciting month in television.  You get to see college kids pour their hearts out into a simple game and witness amazing things in the process.  Butler last year is a prime example.  No one believed in them.  Yeah they were a good mid-major team, but you can't honestly tell yourself that you had a feeling they'd make the run they did.  I loved it.  It gives other teams with less resources than the big time programs a reason to believe they can do something special.

Well, I'm missing too much basketball writing this so I will leave you with my strong encouragement to sit back and see if this year's Cinderella story can get lucky enough on their Spring Break to truly do something special.

Thanks for reading,
McKinley

The Decision Maker

I should have written this blog at about 8 am.  However, I was in school today.  After all it is Presidents Day and it is a national holiday.  We decided to get ourselves snowed in a few weeks ago, and this was the penalty.  I don't mind much because I'd rather work now than during Spring Break or in June.  I don't know that I've ever celebrated this holiday and to be quite honest I don't know that I ever will.  How exactly do you celebrate Presidents Day?  If there is a consensus answer let me know so I can gear up for 2012.  So what I did was just think about Presidents past, present and even future.  I'm sort of a history fan(I don't like using the word buff here for some reason) so I've always tied Presidents with events in our country's past.  I looked at a few polls and most of them had about the same rankings.  Of course you could never give them a true ranking.  But most of them had George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, FDR(my favorite), Teddy Roosevelt and Ronald Reagan as the Top 5 Presidents.  I'd give you the list of bad ones, but I'm not one to judge them because I know that I couldn't do their job.  Besides, I think that the problems that each President had were mostly a by product of the previous President.  It makes sense considering how party politics are the toast of the town now.  If everyone didn't choose a party and we were all independent, then we'd all work as one and not pout when the other is in office.(personal pipedream)  But for the sake of my own personal rankings, I decided to do it by the decades I've been alive.  I don't remember the 80's very much so I'll just have to say that that was a 3 on a scale of 1 to 5.  The 90's were awesome.  Some of this could be attributed to me being in the thick of my childhood, but I can remember that it seemed most everyone was satisfied with the decade as a whole.  So I give the 90's a A+.  Thanks Bush Sr. and Clinton.  It's easy for me to critique the 2000's, because I've been an adult for most of it.  But I think it's pretty clear that the past 10 years, the country has been more divided than it has in a long time.  I hope for change in the next decade.  Well I'm tapped out on Presidents.
Hail to the Chief!

Thanks for reading,
McKinley

The Coach Who Knew Too Little

I need a good vent.  If there's anything that I feel the need to lash out on, it's the coach of Mississippi State's basketball team.  Yes I'm talking about "The Rick Stansbury."  First off understand that while I do support Mississippi State Athletics, this man has left me scratching my head and questioning that support on too many occasions.  To anyone who reads this, I hope you'll have a better view of why I criticize this man so much.  Am I asking you to jump on the bandwagon?  No.  I'm just tired of a divided fanbase.  Half us don't want Rick as the man that directs this program.  The other half will defend him to the end.  Here's my argument. 

Some MSU fans see this man as an excellent recruiter.  I'm with them on that.  Rick has brought some good talent to Starkville.  However, if MSU gets just as good recruits as the teams they play, then how come State doesn't have players get drafted. I can count 2 players that have ever been drafted on a Stansbury coached team.  Lawrence Roberts(transferred from Baylor..so Rick didn't recruit him out of high school) and Jarvis Varnado(best shot blocker in college basketball history...someone had to draft him).  Both of these players are currently playing overseas, to my knowledge.  The best recruits Rick has ever had committed were Travis Outlaw, Monta Ellis and Jonathan Bender.  The first 2 start in the NBA, the other has retired from the NBA.  So you could say that the best recruits Rick has ever had committed to play at MSU never even stepped on campus.  Also, I question the character of some of the recruits Rick does get to campus, which leads me to my next bullet point.

Character issues have been a problem on this team since Rick has been at MSU.  If you drink water daily, then you know about the fight that happened between Renardo Sidney and Elgin Bailey earlier this year.(The latter transferred...which I'll get to in a minute)  People easily remember that, but they also tend to forget that at least 4 players on State's current team have been suspended by Rick at some point in their careers.(Sidney, Dee Bost, Kodi Augustus and Ravern Johnson)  Ironically, all of those players are starters.  Which goes back to my last point, Rick must see talent when recruiting these guys, but does he not see the baggage they might be carrying?  This leads me into my next point.

When the players that Rick recruits get in trouble, their suspension only seems to be 1 to 2 games maximum.  Sidney fights on national television and gets a 2 game suspension.  Ravern Johnson, Kodi Augustus and Dee Bost bad mouth the coach in the media and through social networking and they get one game suspensions.  Have a backbone Rick.  You run your team, not your players.  On to the next issue.

The number of players that transfer due to different issues is staggering.  I'm going to name the ones I can think of and give you their destination and what they did with their time there.  Steven Cowherd(averaged about 5 points in 2 years at South Alabama..you could say he was a bust) Jerell Houston(averaged 10 pts a game over 2 years at Tenn. St....decent player, bad character) Bernard Rimmer(finished senior season leading North Georgia in scoring at 14.5 ppg) Vernon Goodridge(Averaged 7 points at Lasalle as a senior is a developmental prospect in the NBDL) Gary Ervin(Averaged above 10 points for Arkansas over 2 year, both of which they made the NCAA tournament) Jacquiese Holcomb(Averaged 7 points at West Texas A&M..bust) Walter Sharpe(Stud at UAB, drafted by Pistons in 2nd Round of NBA Draft...character issue) Ben Hansbrough*(see below) The Delk Twins(both had successful careers at Louisville and Troy respectfully) Twany Beckham(walking on at mighty Kentucky) Phil Turner(good junior year at Delta State before he was kicked off of their team) and lastly Elgin Bailey(tbd at Southeastern Louisiana...but he's probably in a bar fight in Nawlins as I type).  So on Hansbrough....this guy said that the reason he transferred is due to MSU not having a practice facility.  I think that's crap.  I think he knew how bad of a coach Rick was and knew that he'd never reach his potential at State.  Evidence you might ask for. He's the leading scorer on his 8th ranked Notre Dame team, that plays in the toughest conference in America.  Oh and he's also a player of the year candidate in that conference..no biggie.  He saw the writing on the wall. 

I don't want to bore most of you with more issues I have with Rick Stansbury, but I'm going to.  He runs the motion offense.  That's it.  No other offensive sets have been run in any game that I've ever watched since he's been in Starkville.  He stresses defense and rebounding, although we are in the SEC statistics cellar this year in both categories.  He's not a competitor.  Under Rick, State has been known to be up by 20 points in a game only to let the lead slip away and either barely win or like last Saturday lose to a very poor Auburn team.  He gives the starters a rest when State gets up big, then takes them out for long stretches.  The other team then makes big scoring runs against the backups.  He doesn't stress the importance of winning against really crappy teams in out of conference play.  I'm not even gonna begin to name some of the Idaho Tech's of the world State should have crushed.  This hurts the RPI.  So for all you fans that say man "We played Kentucky so good in the SEC Championship last year, we should have made tournament, we got screwed."  Remember that if you don't lose to Rider or Western Kentucky, you don't need to beat Kentucky to get in.  He lets walk-ons on the team who are friends of the program or their daddy invested a lot of money in the program so they could be on the team.  I'm sorry but the 2 5'6 kids that are walk ons this year do not make the starters any better in practice.  I know plenty of people on campus that could have made the team as walk ons.  Heck some of them were better than the players on scholarship.  Lastly, the guy is just lazy.  There's no excitement in the program, even when State has had good teams.  The fans don't want to watch a poorly coached product.  The university pays this man 1.2 million dollars a year to coach basketball.  Dan Mullen made 1.3 million his first year.  Look at the football program now. 

Understand that I don't expect frequent Final Four trips or even Sweet Sixteen trips for that matter.  I just expect a competitive product.  I want to be proud of the team State puts on the floor, not explaining why players always fight and there are so many transfers.  I know this blog will not make Rick lose his job and I don't necessarily want it to.  But the ship needs to be righted and I'm not so sure Rick needs to be the captain.

Thanks for reading and Motion!,
McKinley

3 holidays: 1 is important, the other 2 not so much

About 7 weeks have passed since I was supposed to write this blog.  Pretty pathetic on my part considering the first topic is the most important national holiday.  I honestly thought I could let it go and just do a Christmas blog during 12/11(which I'll probably do anyway).  But I've got a guilty conscience.  Really I just want to share what the Christmas holidays mean to me.  I've not always been very reflective of holidays and truly soaked them in.  For me, up until the last few years, Christmas was about being around friends.(Still is to an extent)  Sure I'd be around my family closer to the 25th, but some of the best hangouts, adventures and scenarios of my life have been over Christmas holidays.  As for this past Christmas, my life was pretty simple.  As I've gotten older, there are less friends to hang out with.  It kind of shocked me to be honest.  One great thing that I did do this Christmas was relax.  Almost each day of the break I found myself in deep thought.  I don't have the patience to type all of what went on in my head, but let me just say that when you look at Christmas with Jesus in the forefront of your thoughts, you truly appreciate it more.  Well to top Christmas off, we got a little snow.(And then some more snow)  I can't remember a white Christmas since I've been alive. The snow we got Christmas day was kind of overshadowed by the snow we got in January.  I'm writing this now because the snow reminds me of this past Christmas, which should remind all of us that Christmas should bring good reminders.  Happy late B-day Jesus!

Next, I'll blog on 2 holidays that don't really mean much to me.  First, is New Year's.  The only real thing that I can appreciate about New Years is watching college football.  Luckily, the team I root for the most went to a bowl game in Jacksonville.(lovely city by the way)  That made for a really nice new year.  It's really the only fun I can get out of New year's.  I don't like going on last second new years trips just to a big party.  You could call me out and say "Well Mac didn't you go to Dallas to watch Ole Miss in the Cotton Bowl last year?"  I'd say yes but the common denominator for my trip to Dallas and my trip to Jacksonville was friends.  I'd go to any bowl game for MSU but having close friends there make the trip that more special.  The only other thing about New Year's is your resolution.  I've never followed through on one, that I can remember.  So this year I told myself, don't start the resolution right away because you'll just fizzle as always.  So I started back working out the first of February.  I'm still with it but only time will tell. 

Lastly is Valentines Day.  I've never had a grasp on this holiday.  I've been on the single and not single side of it and I wake up feeling the same on the 15th each year.  To be honest both sides suck.  I can see how most single people will either wish they had some significant other.  On the flip side of it, you can treat it just as any other day, which for me personally works just fine.(If we don't get out of work or school for it, it's not a holiday)  I feel that this holiday is not important just because of what it represents.  It's a day supposedly where "people in love express their love for each other."(At least that's the google definition for it)  Here's my problem with it: if you love someone shouldn't you let them know that more than just one day out of 365?  I mean seriously, when you say I love you, does it mean more on February 14th than any other day?  I think the holiday has really just become over hyped by the media driven world.(yeah I'm talking to you Jane Seymour and your Open Hearts Collection)  It's a perception holiday.  At some point in the holiday's history, some guy went over the top with what he bought for his significant other.  The girl then told her friends and they began to expect from their boyfriends/husbands.  Yadda yadda yadda and so on...it brings us to now.  I might not ever be in another relationship in my life,but if I am I'll show her love for the duration of our relationship, not just for show on a day that is just the 45th day of each year and nothing more than another day that God has given us to live to the fullest.

Thanks for reading,
McKinley

Coach I woke up this morning and saw my shadow and therefore there will be 6 more weeks of recruiting speculation

2 subjects today: The first is one that is not for the faint of heart.  It's a cut-throat, ruthless topic that there really is no way to dissect in an exact manner.  But that's what I aim to do.  If I sling a little mud at a rival school in this blog, then I apologize up front.  But if you keep up with in-state recruiting, you know some of the crazy stuff that's happened over the last month and a half.  Let me say first that I am a person that keeps up with recruiting in Mississippi, specifically Mississippi State recruiting.  I have invested a great deal of my time and interests into MSU athletics and as expected I like to keep up with the players they are interested in.  This being said I am unhappy with this year's recruiting season.(notice I didn't say recruiting class)  I'm proud of all the Mississippi kids who signed football scholarships and will further their education.  However, I am not sure that all these kids will be entering their respected schools honestly.  The biggest example I can make is a young man by the name of C.J. Johnson.  This is a student athlete who up until early last month was committed to Mississippi State for over a year.  What happened between then and now is unknown to me but I have my own theories.  I'll use facts first: 1) At the egg bowl this year he was an Ole Miss visitor and stood up when Chris Relf had a long run in the first quarter....some one affiliated with Ole Miss ripped his visitor pass and lanyard off his neck and said that if he was a rebel visitor then he didn't need to visit Ole Miss 2) He's been quoted as saying that his father's dying wish was for him to play for Mississippi State. His dad said "At the end of the day, all you have is your word." He followed that by saying I'm 100% committed to Mississippi State. 3) He says a reason he decommitted is because his main two recruiters(Diaz and Hudspeth) took other jobs(he committed to MSU before Diaz was even hired 4) He also said that State fans put too much pressure on him by putting stuff on his facebook wall(you can take that for what it's worth) 5)Lastly, he was MSU's bell cow recruiter himself up until the day he decommitted.  Now with all that being said, he decides to commit to Ole Miss just days after 3 and 4 happened.  I don't want to say that something illegal was done to get him to Oxford but I can't get out of my mind how it wasn't....unless of course the kid is just a pathological liar and I don't believe he is.  There were other prospects that were big on State and switched late as well but the situations were different and I wasn't as dissapointed that State didn't sign them.  That being said, it's kind of refreshing that this in state rivalry is getting heated up again(like it was in the late 90's).  I like it when both teams are doing well....the Egg Bowl means more when both teams have something to play for.  All in all, I wish Mr. Johnson and the rest of the Rebel commits success except for one game each year.  I'm proud of the kids that signed with state and hope that recruiting continues to flourish for those that don Maroon and White.  Oh and it's groundhog day....two words: Bill Murray.  Love the movie and glad we get an early spring.....yeah right.

Until next time, thanks for reading
McKinley

P.S. I've been writing a bunch of blogs...just havent published them...I'll be slinging out the good word a bunch in the next few days of ones I've done since Christmas