Remembering Brandon Jackson

I was iffy on telling this story this morning because there's no way to disaggregate my favorite memory of watching Army CB Brandon Jackson from what was going on in my life that day.  In the end, I decided that there's never a wrong time to celebrate a young man's life after he's taken too soon, so here goes...

Post-Game Thoughts: Army vs. Rice

That was a great game yesterday

Inside #RICEvsARMY pic.twitter.com/A6uCAJzsUo

— Army WP Football (@ArmyWP_Football) September 10, 2016

Friday Football Picks: NFL Week 1

I had an idea for an NFL picks league for the blog.  Alas, I had it yesterday afternoon, which didn’t leave me enough time to create an actual league.  Instead, this is more “picks with a couple of friends.”  Hopefully it’s worth your time.

I'm a Giants fan.

The idea was this:

Random Access

A stroll through the morning's Twitter feed.

A guide on how to join the global elite #econarchive https://t.co/0Yimue0vm1 pic.twitter.com/Y4ud5xn631

— The Economist (@TheEconomist) September 8, 2016

First off, you have to choose a career out of a very narrow field:

Army Football Preview: Rice

The Black Knights of the Hudson thrilled their fanbase with a strong win against a stout opponent last week.  Army’s win over Temple was the program’s best result since 2010.  Now the team looks to start 2-0 for the first time since 1996.

Army fans, it’s been a long time since you’ve had reason to feel this good about your program.  Enjoy it!

Yesterday's Workout (or "How to Swim Stupid")

I got in the water late yesterday morning for a belated long swim.  I'd intended to do some open water swimming while we were camping over the weekend, but that didn't happen, leaving me to try to cram it all in on Labor Day.  

Results were mixed.

Still Celebrating

We're still celebrating the start of college football season and Army's opening win.  If you haven't seen it, here are the highlights.

Quick Thoughts: Army vs. Temple

First off, that was a terrific win!  It was a brilliant effort against a worthy opponent in a stadium that had previously been a House of Horrors. 

We said before the game that if Army could limit Temple's running game and force QB P.J. Walker to try to win with his arm, that there might be some opportunity there.  Temple actually ran well, especially between the 20s, but Army's defense stiffened near the goal line, forcing fields goals--and one turnover--and that was the difference in the game. With Army scoring touchdowns while Temple kicked field goals and punts, the Owls eventually had to shift to a hurry-up offense, and that's when we the the Black Knights' defense really come up big. LBs Andrew King and Kenneth Brinson both had picks late, icing a fifteen point road win against what had previously been an emerging college football powerhouse.

Friday Mad Science: How to Meet Women

Friday Mad Science is back!

The Internet blew up earlier this week with talk of “pickup artists” and “How to talk to a woman wearing headphones.”  Folks have spent the week running down men for wanting to meet women, and in the long run, I do not think that this is in anyone’s best interests.  The problem is not that men and women do not need to meet and even get together, it’s that there is a right and a wrong way to do everything, and right now, dudes are reading a shitload of bad information.  Blame technology, the PC police, the Baby Boomers, or whomever you’d like.  Whatever the reason, what we have now is an entire class of people who have no clue whatsoever how to speak to the opposite sex.  

It’s become a serious problem, apparently.

Battery Park, NYC

Battery Park is a large, open access green space and public park located at the southern tip of the island of Manhattan.  It's a common tourist destination and the site of may of New York's modern day war memorials.  Sally, the girls, and I visited Battery Park as part of our recent two-day vacation to New York City.

Sally and the girls in Battery Park.

Story Re-Write: Centurion Six (Opening Only)

Sketch in My Notebook

This is the "revised" opening for "Centurion Six," tentatively scheduled for part of the short story anthology I've been working on.  I feel like I've been struggling it, though.  I am therefore hanging it out to ask for a couple of opinions.

Centurion Six

In the near future, genetic mutation has become the weapon of choice in an increasingly chaotic world.  Easier to hide and cheaper by far to develop and control than the nuclear and chemical weapons programs of a previous era, soon every tin-pot dictator, cult-leader, and agenda-based non-state actor on the planet begins developing “ultra-human” capabilities.  Against the proliferation of politically violent “supermen”, mundane humans--so-called ”mundies”--can offer little defense.

Follow-Up on Bradshaw & the Army

I get letters.  This one is from a friend whom I'm not going to identify:

"Hey! This might be a case of filing under 'better late than never,' but while I can read your site on RSS at work, I can't comment because it blocks. Of course, when I get home, I have a ton of other things on my mind. 

"Anyways, your blog post about the rumor that Bradshaw was leaving ARMY that kind of turned into what the Service can do for you, really struck a chord with me. 

Back to Life, Back to Reality

It's Sunday, but after more than a week off, we're back to the grind today.  I have to swim, iron, and get to the grocery store, and tomorrow I have to go into New York City and do actual work.  My phone tells me that I have more than a hundred sixty-five emails waiting for me, and that's after I've had my out-of-office assistant on all week telling people not to bother trying to contact me.

Sally took this picture yesterday at Pier A in Hoboken.

What can you do?  We've got to pay the bills.