Heath Ledger, 28, exits the world's stage

I am very sorry to hear aobut the passing of actor Heath Ledger. Wow. He was only 28. (I’ll be 35 in February, so it really puts things in perspective for me). As of this blog posting, the autopsy is inconclusive; sleeping pills and anti-anxiety pills were found at his bed, and his family insists that Ledger did not commit suicide. For me, I’ll always remember him for that quirky medieval comedy A Knight’s Tale.

Sorry to see you gone so soon, Heath.

Cat thinks I'm its mother!

I was woken up this morning at around midnight by something disturbing, yet hilarious. One of our Calico cats, Cassie, was sucking on my ears. First my right and then my left a short while later. Apparently she was trying to nurse! I thought she'd put two and two together (figuratively speaking...nobody's ever proven cats can do math) and realize that since nothing was coming out that it was pointless). If I hadn't been so sleepy, I would've laughed myself limp.

A lady at work told me some cats will do this as a type of soothing activity. Glad I could be of service, Cassie!

Congratulations, Eli Manning

You have really showed lately that you're becoming a good quarterback. I watched you beat my favorite team, the Dallas Cowboys, last week, and I honestly don't remember a single bad pass you threw. I hope you and the New York Giants defeat the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII and that you and your brother can compare Super Bowl rings. Something tells me that the Patriots, who have come closer and closer to getting defeated in the past month, might encounter the same surprise with the Giants that the Buffalo Bills did years ago.

My prediction:

New York 30
New England 21

Getting a new van today

1998 Dodge Ram van. We had to get this when our previous van, a 1995 Chevy Astro, was totaled. I've told my wife that we need to drive it only when absolutely necessary since it takes alot of gas. Lots and lots of features on this. Will post a pic sometime.

The Death of Bobby Fischer

As someone who enjoys the game of chess, I was very saddened to hear of the passing of American-born former world chess champion Bobby Fischer. Fischer, who died January 18 in Iceland (where he had assumed citizenship in an effort to avoid returning to America) at the age of 64, leaves behind a mixed legacy. He is generally considered the greatest chess player America has ever produced and one of the greatest of all-time. We'll never know how good he could've been since, after becoming the world chess champion in the early seventies, he eventually dropped out of the game and became a recluse.

Former world chess champion Garry Kasparov told the Associated Press this about Fischer's death: "The tragedy is that [Fischer] left this world too early, and his extravagant life and scandalous statements did not contribute to the popularity of chess."

The New York Times also had this fascinating interview with Kasparov where he details some interesting things: he never met Fischer, but Fischer reportedly expressed interest in playing Kasparov.

Post-Michigan Primary thoughts

The controversial Michigan primary is over. My wife and I talked about the issues, prayed and compared where the candidates stood on the issues, and we voted for Mike Huckabee.

I can't speak for Jennifer, but for me, it was mostly a protest vote. I don't think Huck will get the nomination, and I doubt he'd do well against Hillary or whomever gets the democrat nomination. But with our views, Huck was the closest to what we believe. Granted, it was more of Huckabee stunk the least of all the candidates. I didn't like John McCain's views on immigration or his campaign finance bill; Giuliani's too much of a RINO; Romney has a track record of being a liberal and is only now starting to have conservative social issues. I've been a registered voter since 1992, and I have yet to see an election where one candidate jumps out as THE choice. Too bad I was too young to vote when Reagan was in office.

Don't cry for me, Terrell Owens

In the past, Terrell Owens has blasted his quarterbacks, questioning the sexuality of San Francisco 49ers teammate Jeff Garcia (not the brightest thing to do in a city with such a liberal view on homosexuality like Frisco) and talking of how Philadelphia Eagles qb Donovan McNabb got sick in the huddle during the Super Bowl (maybe it was just a bad can of Campbell's Chunky Soup). But after Sunday's 21-17 loss to the New York Giants, T.O. was surprisingly supportive of Tony Romo. Dallas, who had homefield advantage throughout the playoffs and finished the season at 13-3, now faces an early off-season vacation.

Because pictures of Owens' crying hidden behind his sunglasses and his support for Romo, I've wondered what T.R. thinks. Perhaps a song is in order:

Don’t Cry For Me, Terrell Owens
(parody of Don’t Cry For Me Argentina)
Lyrics by Richard Zowie

Your tears were moving
Even hidden behind your Secret Service sunglasses
I didn’t know you cared for me that much
If I had known, I’d have thrown you more passes
It was a tough loss, I think you’ll agree
I’ll try to tell you how I feel
I know you like me more than you did Jeff Garcia
Or even Donovan McNabb
But I need you to know I’m doing ok
Jessica’s by my side, I have a big contract
And next season will be better

Don't cry for me Terrell Owens
The truth is I never quit liking you
No matter how much popcorn you spill
Or what crazy things you say and do
Don’t cry for me, Terrell Owens

We have next season to make it right
As long as we draft and sign the right guys
Sure, we wasted a 13-3 record, but that’s fine
But, please, send this message for me:
Michael Strahan, you can’t have Jessica

Don’t cry for me Terrell Owens

My new favorite jeans!

I LOVE Tommy Hilfiger Jeans! They are so comfortable. Picked up a pair at Goodwill a week or so ago. Someday I'll have to visit a store and pick up a few new pairs.

Suicidal chickens

The chickens that live next door must have death wishes. They walk around their's and our yards, even tough there are farm cats outside and a few dogs here and there. I've seen dogs eat chickens, and cats love birds.

I picked up one chicken, a female white Leghorn and put her back in the fence.

Ode to Earl Weaver

Here's a video of the unforgettable baseball manager Earl Weaver, seen here in this 1982 game where he gets ejected arguing a balk call. (WARNING: video contains profanity).

Weaver, to my knowledge, is the only MLB manager to not only get ejected from both games of a double-header, but to get ejected from the second game before it even began (he was tossed during resentation of the lineup cards while disputing a call from the first game).

I accidentally created a new topping at work

By accidentally dumping schmear into streusel and trying--without complete success--to scrape it out, a co-worker named Pat told me that we now had:

Schmeusel!

(Pronounced "shmoo-sel")

Think it'll catch on?

Great Teachers I’ve had, Part 1: Dr. James McTee

Dr. McTee was my senior English teacher at A.C. Jones High School, Beeville, Texas back in the 1990-1991 school year. He was tough, quiet and knew his material. He seemed to have an almost photographic memory of books, and it was very apparent to me that he adored books. I started off in his Honors class but, by the end of the first semester, was forced to transfer down to regular English classes. Still, I stayed in his class (something I requested to do if I didn’t make it in honors). My grade for the year was around 85%, but I really found myself really learning to love reading while in his class. Someday, if things work out, I’d love to teach English at the secondary level, and I feel that if I employ his techniques, style and love for reading, it would be hard to go wrong.

Dr. McTee’s instruction was clear: keep up on the reading, understand what’s going on and be able to intelligently discuss it and you should do fine.

I’ll never forget that day I did a book report with him on dress-up day; normally a man to wear slacks, open-collared short-sleeved white dress shirt with a t-shirt underneath, Dr. M was dressed in his hobby: bicycle rider. My book report was on Deliverance, and to this day it still amazes me how much the doctor knew about countless books. If you didn’t know the answer on a quiz or test, it was best to leave it blank: some teachers you could fool if you could write creatively enough, but most certainly not him.

Dr. McTee, if you’re reading this, I hope you’re enjoying your retirement.

Will I watch baseball this season? Hard to say

Spring training is just around the corner, and soon my favorite team, the Houston Astros, will be getting ready for the season. Honestly, though, I could be far more enthusiastic. The steroids/human growth hormone scandal has really soured me on baseball, far more than the strike of 1994.

How many years did Bud Selig know that chemical enhancement was a problem in baseball? Too many, I suspect. I guess it was easier to watch Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa hit Ruthian home runs and help baseball recover from its strike.

I find myself longing for the days of the eighties, when Jesse Barfield hit 40 homers in 1986, a number that seemed remarkable at the time.

When I look at my Barry Bonds rookie 1987 Topps baseball card and see how slender he was, his home run records* of 73 in a season and 762 career homers are both pathetic jokes.

Whom will I vote for?

This is looking like yet another presidential campaign in which there are no clear "great" choices. Alas, I was only 11 the last time we had a clear-cut choice--back in 1984 when President Ronald Reagan ran for re-election. I'm an independent conservative, so it goes without saying that none of the Democrats appeal to me. Of the Republicans, I like Fred Thompson, although I wonder how long he'll be in the race. I don't like Mitt Romney's social issues but he seems solid in terms of fiscal issues. Mike Huckabee, though a former minister and a Christian, seems like a mixed bag; supposedly democrats want him to get the GOP nomination since they feel he'd be the easiest to defeat. I'm not impressed with Rudy Giuliani's social issues positions. As for John McCain, I've never really gotten over his anti-First Amendment campaign finance reform. Still, if McCain gets the nomination, I will probably vote for him.

There's also third party. The only way I'll do that is if the GOP has no chance of losing in November or if their candidate so much disgusts me that I decide on a protest vote.

Happy New Year!

Wow, 2008. When I was a kid, I loved staying up until midnight seeing in the new year. This year I didn't. Too tired, mostly.

2008 means a few interesting things:

If you accidentally write 2007 on a check, no worries. With the deft use of your pen, you can easily modify the 7 into an 8.

This year my son and two of his cousins (my nephews) will be turning 10. 1998 was a very bountiful year for the procreation of the Zowie family tree.

I hope this year is a little better than 2007. We'll see.