Watch the Inauguration

Today, all eyes are on the United States of America as the Presidency changes hands in front of a worldwide audience. While some have chosen to boycott the 58^th Inauguration Day festivities, I will be watching. I will be watching because today is historic no matter the name, party or platform of the individual taking the oath of office. It’s a time when all of America should turn their ear to hear the new President’s first message as leader of the free world.

It’s been 92 years since Calvin Coolidge’s inauguration became the first to be broadcast nationally on the radio. It was the sixth-longest Inaugural Address in U.S. history, yet not one that stands out for a defining quote we all know today. It was March 4, 1925. My grandmother was 35 days old.

Twenty-four years later, Harry Truman was the first to deliver his address on national television. Twelve years later, John F. Kennedy urged citizens to “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country” in the first Inauguration televised in color. In 1997, President Bill Clinton’s second oath of office was the first to be streamed online. Since then, with the creation of smart phones and more and more internet media, the opportunities to watch or listen to an Inauguration have grown. Eight years ago, Barrack Obama’s first Inaugural set a world record with 45.5 million viewers via video stream, in addition to the 2 million in attendance and millions watching on TV.

There will be no shortage of ways to watch President-Elect Donald Trump take the oath of office today at noon (ET) to become the 45^th President of the United States and deliver his Inaugural Address. The ceremony will be broadcast live on television, radio and streamed live through various platforms and media groups.

Today, as my daughter turns a year old, we will watch via ABC’s Roku app. It will be the first Inauguration in either of my children’s lifetime and a moment my daughter will have as part of her birthday every four years (1, 5, 9, 13, 17, 21, etc.). My wife watched her first one a day shy of eight months old when Ronald Reagan took his second oath of office.

Currently our nation continues to divide into partisan politics. It is reported that 65 Democratic members of Congress will skip the Inauguration events in boycott. It shouldn’t be missed though that the boycotts are from among the party and not that of the 2016 2016 Presidential runner-up Hillary Clinton, who will be in attendance. While some Democrats have dismissed her attendance as that of a former First Lady, only two runner-ups have not attended in the last 30 years: Gov. Michael Dukakis in 1989 and Gov. Mitt Romney in 2013. In fact all Presidents who lost re-election bids have attended their successor’s inauguration (most recently George H.W. Bush in 1993 and Jimmy Carter in 1981), except John Adams in 1801 and his son John Quincey Adams in 1829.

This is not a day to turn a deaf ear in America or try to make our voices louder than that of the incoming President.

This year’s address by Trump, estimated to last 20 minutes, is believed to be a call for unity. While many may find that call hard to believe given campaign rhetoric and our political climate, we should listen, and we should do so with an open mind, regardless of our political stance or view of our new President. Not doing so cheats ourselves and our country.

Our new President, deserves our ear. We don’t have to agree, but we should listen. We don’t have to show our face, but we should watch.

Happy New Year!

(Enter cliche lead here)

It's 2016, and I'm kicking it off like most do with on New Year's - attacking my new year's resolutions. Only this year, it's not resolutions I seek to complete, but goals.

On Dec. 27 I started thinking about the idea of new year's resolutions, and I was reminded of the last list I made. I couldn't remember if it was 2015 or 2014, so I scrolled through my iPhone notes to find it.

The list reads: spend more time with family, enjoy life more, better productivity on projects at work and home, restore old hobbies or add new ones, make time for friends.

I'm not sure how much of that was actually done in 2014. However, a decision in late 2014 opened the door for those resolutions in 2015, only I didn't realize it until now.

A friend recently posted on Facebook to describe 2015 in one word. I chose "Transition."

It was the year I resigned my job as sports information director at Campbellsville University after 5 1/2 years without another job lined up, all to move back to Alabama to help my wife pursue her career track. Initially, we planned to live short term with family until our house in Kentucky sold. I would take an extended "vacation" from work and freelance some until the right job opened up. By summer, the house hadn't sold, we found out we were pregnant with our second child, and we decided as a family for me to stay home with the kids while pursuing freelance work. This is just a taste of the transitions we had within our family. But looking back, these transitions allowed for more time with family, some improved productivity at home, a little more time with friends and an improved enjoyment of life outside of work.

That realization also showed the 2014 resolutions are actually annual resolutions and became the basis for my 2016 New Year's Goals. While I've never been big on resolutions, starting this year, I am shifting my philosophy to set achievable daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual goals instead of resolutions.

Daily
- Write (blog, notebook or other - not including work)
- Budget time and stay on schedule
- Set aside a minimum of 30 minutes a day to spend with each child individually.

Weekly (minimum of once a week)
- Bible time outside of church
- Exercise once a week (not counting family walk)
- Take a walk with the family
- Cook two dinners
- Update spending and evaluate monthly cash flow plan (budget)
(read the Bible more, exercise, eat healthy, more family time, get out of debt, etc. seem to be common resolutions, I figure this is a realistic start).

Monthly
- Date with my wife
- Schedule a lunch/dinner/visit with each local family member
- Schedule a call/lunch/coffee with each of my closest friends
- Read a new book
- Evaluate and revise monthly cash flow plan (budget)

Quarterly
- Organize storage closet
- Make one trip to Salvation Army, etc. to donate items we no longer need.

Annual
- Become debt free


This is just a start. There are a few not listed, and I hope to add a few more here and there without compromising the others. For example, notice volunteering isn't on the list. It should be, but for now that's a resolution. I'll need to work on turning it into an achievable goal.

So, to begin 2016, I'm tackling my list and checking off daily goal No. 1.

Hopefully it won't be two years between blog posts (though that seems to be the pattern). I hope to do some of the daily writing here from time-to-time.

Until then, Happy New Year (said with my best Frosty the Snowman "Happy Birthday" impression).

April 15-20 - A Week To Remember

“All in all, this has been a tough week.”

Those were some of the last words in a Friday evening statement issued by President Barack Obama on Friday, April 19, 2013.

The statement (here) came after a week-long man hunt for two suspects in the Boston Marathon bombing came to a close and within days after an explosion in West, Texas.

In the two events combined, 17 have been confirmed dead, more than 380 injured and as of 10 a.m. EDT on Saturday, April 20, many were still missing in Texas.

But little did President Obama recognize with his statement, that he spoke not only for this week in 2013 but for the third week of April throughout American history.

The moment I learned of the attacks in Boston on Monday, I realized what week this was. The Boston Marathon is designed to celebrate Patriot Day – honoring both the beginning and the end of the American Revolution. It was April 17, 1775 when Paul Revere road through the streets of Boston warning of the British advancement by sea. Two days later, 122 people were killed, 213 injured and 58 were reported missing in the first official day of war at Lexington-Concord. The eight-year war began to form peace on April 15, 1783 after 130,000 lives were claimed on American soil.

Since this founding battle of the United States of America, the third week of April has remained as a week of disaster and national headlines. It’s a week that I would circle on the calendar if I was head of a national newsroom or the President’s chief of staff. It’s a week that for whatever reason should be a no vacation time period.

There are other weeks that stand out as deadly times in American history. July 1865 was the Battle of Gettysburg. The middle of September holds two of the bloodiest days in American history: The Battle of Antietam (Battle of Sharpsburg), which claimed 22,717 lives on Sept. 17, 1862, and also the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001.  

But no week stands out throughout America’s 237 years like this one.

Since 1776, the week of April 15-20 has seen 4,285 killed and 5,847 injured in 12 major historical events on American soil. Five of those events, not including the fire in West, Texas, resulted in more than $23.4 billion worth of damage to homes and cities. These numbers do not include the 1,517 that died in 1912 when the Titanic sank in the Atlantic or many killed in international events during this same time period in history.

So, yes, this has been a tough week.

Forever, as time moves on, this will be a week of remembrance, possibly even the “National Week of Remembrance.”

It is this week that we remember: the Patriots, Lincoln, the Titanic, Beirut, Waco, Oklahoma City, Columbine, Virginia Tech, Boston and West, Texas.

It is also this week that many others have died that we may not keep in the front of our memory. Here’s a look back at April 15-20, 1776-2013. Take note and remember.

April 17, 1775 – British advancement by sea – start of American Revolution
April 19, 1775 – Lexington-Concord 122 killed, 213 injured, 58 missing.
April 15, 1783 – Preliminary articles of peace ending the American Revolutionary War are ratified. War killed 130,000 during its eight years.
April 15, 1865 – Abraham Lincoln dies after being shot the previous night at Ford Theater.
April 17, 1880 – F4 tornado hits Marshfield, Mo., killing 99, injuring 100.
April 17, 1906 – San Francisco Earthquake, killed 3,000
April 15, 1912 – Titanic sinks at 2:20 a.m. – only 710 of 2,227 survive.
April 15, 1927 – Great Mississippi Flood, the most destructive flood in U.S. history begins. New Orleans is left 4-feet underwater within 18 hours.
April 16, 1947 – Texas City Disaster – an explosion on board a freighter in Texas City, Texas kills almost 600.
April 15, 1969 – North Korea shoots down a US Navy plane, killing 31 in the Sea of Japan.
April 14, 1970 – “Houston, we have a problem.” Apollo 13 oxygen tank blows – but disaster is adverted and the crew returned safely April 17.
April 17, 1983 – Suicide bomber destroys US embassy in Beirut, Lebanon, killing 63.
April 15, 1989 – Tiananmen Square standoff begins.
April 19, 1989 – USS Iowa explosion kills 47.
April 19, 1993 – Waco Fire, 76 killed
April 19, 1995 – Oklahoma City bombing kills 168
April 19, 1997 – Red River Flood
April 20, 1999 – Columbine massacre kills 13, injures 24
April 16, 2007 – Virginia Tech Massacre killed 33, 27 injured
April 20, 2010 – Deepwater Horizon drilling rig explosion, kills 11, 6 month oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
April 15, 2013 – Boston Marathon bombings, killed 3, injured 183 … paralyzed the city for a week.
April 17, 2013 – West, Texas Explosion … death toll and injury count ongoing.
April 15-20, 2004-2013 – 328 killed, 711 injured in three separate bombings in Iraq

In all, major events in U.S. history have claimed the lives of 25-plus per year since 1776 during this week.

Hoffman should be Hermann Trophy finalist

Of the 11 forwards still in the running for the MAC Hermann Trophy, UCLA junior Chandler Hoffman is the most deserving to be at the St. Louis dinner January 6.

Hoffman, the comeback story of 2011, has numbers that rival every candidate up for consideration, but what sets him apart is his precision and accuracy.

After breaking his leg during the 2010 preseason, Hoffman went from being “completely crushed” to one of the best collegiate goal scorers the West Coast has seen in 20 years.

In his last 29 games at UCLA, Hoffman has scored 24 goals, including 18 times in 23 outings this season. Not only that, but the junior, left-footed striker has put the UCLA Bruins on his back en route to the College Cup in his hometown area of Birmingham, Ala. He has converted on 78.3 percent of his shots on goal (18-of-23), the best percentage of the semifinalists by far. Closest to him is University of Memphis striker Mark Sherrod at 59.4 percent (19-of-32).

Hoffman’s 18 goals have come at the rate of 0.78 per game, and at one point this season he scored on 10 consecutive shots on goal. He currently has scored his last five shots on goal entering the College Cup.

The junior is one of 12 goal scorers this season for UCLA, but accounts for 44 percent of the Bruins’ 41 goals. The only semifinalist to account for more of his team’s overall goals is Sherrod at 51.4 percent among 11 goal scorers.

If the Hermann Trophy is going to go to an offensive goal scorer, then Hoffman should be the front runner. While he and Sherrod seem somewhat even in stats, no player has carried his team this season in the NCAA like Hoffman has the Bruins. Hoffman has scored most goals by one player at UCLA since 1991 while also maintaining a 3.79 GPA in communication studies to be selected as a Second Team All-American by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

How shall we honor the tradition of Toomer's Oaks?

When the news hit about the oaks at Toomer's Corner, we all were angered and crushed. In the days since, I've read and heard numerous comments from fans of what should be done with the oak trees should they die. I say should, because I hold out hope that the tough ole' trees will fight this chemical weapon the same way it has stood the test of time. But if the herbicide is too strong, what shall we do to honor the life of this storied tradition?

Some have suggested to bronze the trees before they die or build a statue of the trees in their place. Others have said to use parts of the tree for a monument in Jordan-Hare or other locations. While all of these ideas seem great, let's not forget what makes this tradition so special.

Auburn is not a place for traditions of statues you gaze at or touch. Auburn is about living tradition: a walk with its fans, a battle cry that extends social/economic standards, a flight of an eagle and the beauty of a tree blowing in the wind filled with toilet paper. Each of these are living traditions passed down through generations. Such should be the legacy of the oaks.

Once the poison is gone from the rich Auburn soil, the best fitting tribute would be to pass the corner of Magnolia and College to the next generation of Oaks. Just as alumni pride themselves in being able to carry on their ancestors tradition of being an Auburn Tiger, so should the seedlings of Toomers' oaks, which are maintained by The School of Forestry and Wildlife Science.

Until that day comes, the Auburn Family has the opportunity to spread the seed of Toomer's oaks across the state and nation, not only in their own yards, but in parks or gardens.

The spirit of Auburn is alive. So shall be the spriit of Toomer's Oaks.

Purpose in print

Every now and then when things seem to get a rut, things get busy again at work. And usually in those moments something gives me a boost. Almost always that boost comes from knowing that there was purpose to my job that day.
No other time in my professional career, have I probably felt such purpose than this week.
A former Spain Park track and field captain named Imad Mohammad, 18, and his mother spent five days in the LaSalle Detention Facility in Jena, La. They had been in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody since Jan. 12. I learned of the story this past Monday, three days after they were taken from the Perry County (Ala.) Jail to LaSalle.
While yes, here is a family who is here illegally after their visitation visa expired in the 1990s, they have been appealing their request for asylum for more than a decade, working, paying taxes, getting involved in their community and local school and living a clean, American life. All of a sudden, they were picked up by ICE - nine years after they were told they'd be deported.
While the Immigration Board of Appeals will decide what happens to the family, it was still our job to report what the family and lawyers were seeing as injustice - being detained all of a sudden by the government, while knowing that they had no country to send the family to.
On Wednesday afternoon, that purpose moment came when Imad and his mother were released after an inquiry by U.S. Congressman Spencer Bachus.
The words of encouragement and thank yous coming from the family and friends of the family are better than any award that can be won for a story. Hearing a father say through tears, "You brought a mom home to her children again," leaves you speechless.
Not only has this week brought a renewed sense of humanity to the father of the family and teachers at Spain Park, but hopefully to Imad, who was beginning to believe that he can not trust anyone in this world. Trust is exactly what he needs to have in his family, friends and government - even if by law it is not his government yet.
Here are the stories so far from this week.

1/28 - Mohammads released from jail

1/26 - Former Spain Park runner faces deportation

Who really owns the Iron Bowl?

I'd almost forgotten what an Iron Bowl Saturday in Dixie felt like. After living in Tennessee the previous two Iron Bowls, I'd missed that certain feeling in the air and buzz that moves freely through the state in late November. It's orange, blue, crimson and white everywhere you look. It's tiger tails and Bama flags, as the traffic flows steady down U.S. 280 or South on Interstates 459 and 59.
As Auburn fans celebrate their sixth-straight win over Alabama this week, a 17-10 victory on Nov. 24, I thought I'd pose the question of who really owns the Iron Bowl?
It's not Auburn or Alabama, but Paul "Bear" Bryant.
During Bryant's tenure in Tuscaloosa, he not only racked up one of the greatest coaching records of all time with 323 wins, but posted 19 of those against the "cow college," otherwise known as Auburn Uninversity, the "Loviliest Village on the Plains." His 19-6 record in the 72-game rivalry is the best of any coach for either team. It is understandable why Alabama fans are quick to call the rilvary theirs, however, despite what the series record of 38-33-1 says to their favor, the series is not theirs.
If you eliminate Bear from the equation, Auburn leads the way at 27-19-1.
Only one Alabama coach has beaten its rival more than five times: Bear Bryant. Three Auburn coaches have won more than five over the Tide: Ralph "Shug" Jordan (9-16), Tommy Tuberville (7-2 and still counting) and Pat Dye (6-6). Alabama's Gene Stallings and Red Drew were both 5-2 againt the Tigers.
So, as you see, it is Bear that owns the Iron Bowl, not Bama. For if it weren't for Bear, the bragging rights are Auburn's. Take away the Auburn win's againt Bear and the time spent by Shug and Dye pre-Bear and post-Bear, and the series still tilts toward the Plains (18-11-1).
Of course, you can't elimiate the records of three of the best coaches to coach in the rilvary.
Shug took over Auburn, or API at the time, in 1951 and stayed through 1975. Bear came in 1958 and departed in 1982. Doug Barfield was 0-5 for Auburn from 1976-80, while Dye was 6-6 from 1981-92. The time from Shug to Dye accounts for 42 of the rivalry's 72 games played, thus creating the heart of the heated battle. for this time alone, these 40 games, Bear won 19, Shug won nine and Dye won six. The Tide won 27 and the Tigers won 15.
But has the platue of the rivalry passed or is a new era dawning? Since Dye's departure in 1992, Auburn is 10-5. Before Shug ever walked the sidelines of Legion Field for the Iron Bowl, Auburn was 8-6-1.
The series between the two teams is as close as most of its scores.
Now there's a new Iron Bowl era. Tuberville is knocking on becoming the coach with the most wins against Bama in Auburn history. He already holds the longest win streak for Auburn against Bama. Next is three wins to pass Shug for most wins and to match Bear's streak of nine wins in the series.
So, you tell me, who really owns the Iron Bowl?

OTHER IRON BOWL FACTS
Record by location

Auburn: Auburn 7-2
-- Jordan-Hare Stadium: Auburn 7-2

Tuscaloosa:Auburn 6-0
-- Bryant-Denny Stadium: Auburn 4-0
-- Other Tuscaloosa location: Auburn 2-0

Birmingham: Bama 34-18-1
-- Legion Field: Bama 32-15
-- Birmingham Fair Grounds: Bama 1-0-1
-- West End Park: Auburn 2-1
-- Lakeview Baseball Park: Auburn 1-0

Motgomery: Tied 2-2
-- Highland Park: Bama 1-0
-- Riverside Park: Tied 1-1
-- Other location: Auburn 1-0