Well, fall soccer season is over. My girls lost 1-0 Saturday in the only game of the day. The third team backed out, so we played one game, full 40-minute halves, with free substitution. I had really hoped to win our last game with it being at home and all, but our offense is still developing. Several of the girls mentioned playing indoor soccer during the winter, which would certainly beef up the passing and trapping skills. However, I don't know if there will be enough interest for a team as most of the girls are involved in other things over the winter. In any case, it was fun and I think we had a far better season than our record reflects. There are several of the younger girls that didn't have much playing time in the past that are really starting to find their place on the field. They have several more seasons to play, and I expect to see good things in the future.

That was pretty much the weekend. Sunday was a very lazy day as we knew we had to drag ourselves out of bed at 3am today. Debbie flew out of Traverse City at 6am today on her way to Hawaii. I, of course, am stuck here in the cold. Being a travel agent may not pay as well as being a computer geek, but I have yet to be sent to Hawaii for "work." Not that I'm bitter or anything....

That means that Nestina and I are on our own for over a week. I hope the microwave doesn't break, or we could starve to death. We will gladly accept care packages containing hot meals, assuming anyone can find our house.

Anyway, after scrubbing the Yucatan peninsula down to bare rock, and rinsing thoroughly with 4 feet of rain, Wilma is now returning the southern third of Florida to the sea. After the series of hurricanes over the last couple of years, I assume most structures will survive the wind, but this puppy is dumping some serious water. Back in the old, unenlightened days, people in hurricane-prone areas built with cinder block and concrete. You may lose the entire contents of your house in a flood, but it was unlikely there would be structural damage. Now, of course, everyone builds with wood and drywall. Sure, you can make stick-built houses wind-proof, but nothing you do will keep them from being destroyed by water, and Wilma seems to be pumping a lot of water.

I've been accused in the past of being sexist and racist, so what I am about to say will probably get me into trouble. But, given the last few months, why stop now? Anyway, a black rapper can advocate killing whites, rape, and killing cops and the "leaders" in the black "community" are either silent or openly defend them. But let a couple no-name teen-age white girls, that, prior to getting free national publicity from ABC News, were unheard-of outside a small circle of fans, espouse white nationalist views, and we have the NAACP getting all broken-hearted over "those two girls spewing out that kind of garbage." Where is the heart-break over two-thirds of all black children being bastards? Where is the heart-break over the leading cause of death of black males 16-25 being black males 16-25? Where is the heart-break over the 50% illiteracy rate in Detroit's black neighborhoods? Where is the heart-break over the majority of blacks being unable to speak standard English? Oh. Sorry. I forget that we can't criticize those things: they are part of "Black Culture."

In any case, flame all you want; it won't change the facts.

A tip for Pat Robertson, who I am sure checks this blog every day. When you find yourself on the sharp end of Wiley Miller's humor, it's time to rethink your message, Pat. Or not. Frankly the secular world never tires of the endless humor you provide. You do, however, tend to irritate your fellow-believers, and have likely driven more people away from God than anyone since Tammy Faye.

And last, but certainly not least, Fred Reed takes on the modern prohibitionists at M.A.D.D. I've long considered M.A.D.D. another example of an organization that has outlived its usefulness. When it all started back when I was in high school, they had a point. Most states had ridiculously-high thresholds for being considered driving drunk, and many had little or no escalation for repeat offenders. So M.A.D.D. lobbied for reforms, and got them. Then the real agenda took over, to the point where they have entered the Land of the Bizarre, with M.A.D.D. insisting that it's OK to arrest people who are not even near their vehicles for being "impaired." While Fred compares driving-while-drunk with driving-while-PMS'ing, I've usually gone the safer route and compared it to driving-while-old. I know for a fact that my reaction times right now at 40 years old are substantially slower than they were when I was 20. In fact, I'd be willing to bet that the average 20-year-old could out-perform me on any standardized driving test while legally intoxicated. Don't even get me started on my 91-year-old grandfather that still has a valid drivers license. Now I realize my reaction times aren't as good and I compensate by giving myself more room, being more cautious on unfamiliar roads, and just generally not pushing the envelope when I drive. And, to argue the flip side, a 20-year-old is involved in more accidents per miles driven in spite of their faster reaction time due to a lack of driving experience and common sense. However the fact remains: if we as a society are going to buy the line that a person that has been drinking can be put in jail because he might drive a vehicle at some point in the near future, why do we not do the same for people who are visibly angry, depressed, old, or PMS'ing? After all, the ultimate in safe driving is no one driving.

Anyway, I'm calling it quits real soon. I started work at 5:30 this morning, so I'm scooting out early.