Boxing...What's The Point???

Boxing...I've never really been able to grasp the entertainment factor of 2 people in a square ring (already, the sport shows 'intelligence' calling it a ring) trying to beat the living daylights out of the other one. In every aspect of life, we discourage fighting. People spend time in jail for doing the same damn thing. So, when I read that a boxer named Leavander Johnson is in the hospital, in critical condition, it just made sense that I should take this opportunity to get on my soap box.

What other sport promotes knocking some guy (or woman) repeatidly in the head or whatever body part they can get at, until they drop to their knees and lose? Leavander Johnson was fighting Jesus Chavez and as a result, Leavander has a subdural hematoma. He was taken into surgery, his brain began to swell and the doctors placed him into a medically induced coma. He is listed in grave condition. At 35, he may die because he wanted to be the better boxer. The Winner. Wear some stupid belt.

I just don't get it and never will. Boxing isn't a sport. It's merely a show of who can land the most punches. And gee whiz, I'm sure Jesus Chavez didn't mean to hit him so hard.

Yeah, right.

5ive Things

List #1

OK, everyone makes lists, right? Of course you do! I have lists all over the place...in my purse, on my iPAQ, on my laptop, on my PC, on my laptop at my office...some even have things crossed off. Crossing things off the list. Now THAT'S the best part of having a list. That great feeling of accomplishing something so that you can draw a line through it. Ya gotta love it.

I have a few lists. There's always the list of stuff to do on Saturdays. And the obligatory Christmas list that I start in October as I finish addressing my Christmas cards while I answer the door for all the little Halloween trick or treaters. My favorite list is the one I call my "It Would Be Nice" list. It used to be longer, but I decided to keep it short and sweet, so now it's 5 items. It's a list of the things I definately want to do or accomplish before I check out of this life and into whatever follows. So, here you go. My List. In random order. I hope it motivates you to hit the reply below and let me know what yours is.

1. Take a ride in a hot air balloon

2. Be able to look into the eyes of my grandchild.

3. Visit Greece, my father's homeland.

4. Fall in love again.

5. Scan all my old photographs (I do mean OLD) and create CDs for my kids.

That's it. Nothing earthshattering, but so important to me. There will be other lists. You'll have to check back to find out what they are. Don't you just love teasers???

September 11, 2005

Four years. It was 4 years ago this morning that I watched in horror as the television in my office replayed, over and over, the airplanes flying into the first tower, then the second, followed by the Pentagon and the countryside. Like every other American, I'll never forget that day...that moment. And I don't want to forget it. I want it stored away in my brain, able to bring it up whenever I hear criticism of our efforts to fight terrorism. I want to retrieve it whenever I need to be reminded how vulnerable we were then and still are. I want to hang on to the memory because the minute I forget the horror, the terror, the fear...that's the moment I will doubt that our troops have a reason to be in Iraq. Without any effort on the part of the American troops and all the foreign troops by their side, the bad guys, the Al-Queda, would move forward without resistence in their efforts to kill whoever their leader says they should. Whoever doesn't subscribe to their beliefs. Few do. We have reason to fear them...to want them stopped. Nothing will convince me that if we do nothing, they will just be good boys and stay in their own yard. Anyone who says it's not our war to fight should do more to educate themselves as to just what Al-Queda's master plan is. Some have said to me "I don't worry because I live in the most powerful country in the world. They won't get to me." My response is so obvious I have to try very hard to not laugh in their face. I may be wrong, but weren't there only 16 or 17 men involved in turning those 4 planes into missiles on 9/11/01? As powerful as America is, we couldn't stop that from happening. Wake up...educate yourself.

Never let the image of those planes crashing into the towers totally leave you.

Who Failed Who?

I don't claim to know it all. I read the paper on the weekends and catch the news at night when I can. Like others, I form my own opinions, but try hard to get facts rather than listen to speculation. I've been reading emails being sent by my friends, all having varying opinions on how, and if, the devastating destruction and loss of life caused by Hurricane Katrina could have been minimized at all. If we move forward a step or 2 and decide that efforts would be better served in learning from this rather than debating who was at fault and just who screwed up, the healing process may get started. Just may. I realize we need to analyze what went wrong, who hesitated too long, who did or didn't listen to requests to evacuate, but there are ways we can serve the victims, evacuees, dislocated people and/or refugees (I immensely dislike that one), so let's let the authorities do that. Let's stop blaming the guy at the top who did what he was supposed to do.

Along with my full time job, I have a part time job at my favorite store, The Container Store, here in Fort Worth. Friday, September 9th, 2 ladies came in and were looking for a small stand to put their TV on. They said that they were from New Orleans and needed something for their temporary housing. I told them how sorry I was for what they must have gone through and one lady commented, "Oh, we got out in time. We left when we first heard the reports of how bad it was going to be." They went on to say they had no idea what they would return to, but were grateful they heeded the warnings. These ladies did not hesitate to leave. Material things can be replaced. Lives can't.

Over the next weeks, months and years, we will continue to see reports on the news about lives lost, animals being shot, diseases related to being in the water and rebuilding efforts. I don't think we've even scratched the surface to see just what the long term effects will be...psychological, emotional, financial, health related, the economy and others we haven't even thought of yet. The rebuilding of the gulf coast will take time. Let's hope that, as I've heard people say, it will be better than ever once that effort is complete.