Sunday

Here I sit trying to adjust my body to it being one hour ahead of what time I am used to it being for it is the start of Daylight Savings time. If you are reading this and did not set your clocks ahead an hour, you're probably going to be late to where it is you are going today.

The WVU Rifle team could not manage to win the National Championship this weekend, they finished second overall to TCU and are the national runner ups. I had high hopes of them winning it here, but I guess it was just not to be. This is the first time a National Championship event has been here in Morgantown and at WVU. Hopefully they got a large enough crowd that that they event can return in the future.

The Antonio Brown era is over for the Pittsburgh Steelers. He has been traded overnight to the Los Angeles Raiders for a 3rd and 5th round pick in the upcoming draft. It was rumored that he was going to be traded to Buffalo a couple of days ago, but he kind of threw a monkey wrench in that trade. He had a great career in Pittsburgh, but the past few months the drama has been detrimental to the success of the team, I think it is a good deal. Two draft picks for a 31 year old receiver with an attitude.

Keeping on the theme of sports, BOPARC finally released their softball packets this year, so we will once again be gathering the boys of summer up and hitting the field again as Whitetail Crossing. This will be the 4th year that we have assembled under this sponsor.

Have a great day today.

It's Softball

2016

Let the 2018 Old Farts League Officially begin. Yes the 2018 version of the Whitetail Crossing Men's Senior League Softball Season officially begins tonight.

Coach Smitty has sent to word to me from the beach, where is is still negotiating his contract and is holding out for beer, that our season starts tonight and I'm somehow running things this evening.

This will be our third season playing the Senior League, one that I tend to enjoy as I'm no where near the player I was ten years ago and am just there to have fun the past few years.

This years team is picking up three new players that I used to be team mates with through the years. Todd Greg, Scott "Scooter" Bartlett and Mike Hainze, all of which it will be an honor to hit the field with once again this season. Add that to the team we had last year and a few great guys we picked up last year, and we're going to have a pretty decent team once again this year.

Hi ho hi ho

Photo Flashback Thursday

Once a week I like to take a little bit of time out and look through some of the pictures that I have either taken, scanned or stolen off of the internet through the years and find one special picture that stands out. Little lost moments in time from yesterday caught with a Cameras lens and relived right here in my blog. Sometimes it's pretty easy to find that one special picture and sometimes it's not that easy, one thing it consistently is however is a whole lot of fun.

In figure since I did one of my older softball teams last week, that I would do my current team this week. This picture was taken last year of the Whitetail Crossing team. It's pretty much the same group of guys this year, we added a few and lost one or two and lost on to the season due to injury, but it's still the same core of guys as we had last year.

Both years I have played for them we have put together a great group of guys, after Monday's game most of us stood around in the parking lot BSing as we talked about a number of subjects, mostly softball related.

Playoffs begin Monday and I think we have just found our Niche and could be a team to be reckoned with.

Have a great day.

Hi ho hi ho

Monday

Well all good things must come to an end and that includes those fun filled things that we all call weekends. Now it is time for us to take our collective noses and stick them back together and get back to doing what it is that we do for a living. Me on the other hand, this is my 16th day in a row from what I can recall, I have worked every day since taking off a Saturday for my High School Reunion. I'm not complaining though.

Ice looks pretty good beside Pearl. Michelle is still trying to figure out all the features and accessories, we've been looking through the owners manual to see if it can cook dinner for us as well. Found out we bought her one day shy of us buying Pearl 6 years earlier. Only Pearl was a 2011 that we bought in 2011, Ice is a 2018 that we have bought in 2017 so it is the new model that is just now coming out.

Softball game tonight, it's the last regular season game of the year before the playoffs start, so I have no idea what happens after this evening. We are a playoff team, and will probably have the #3 seed going into the playoffs. Not bad for a bunch of guys who only play Sr league, all the other teams also play the regular leagues, we just get together to play a few games a year. I know some guys are wanting to put a regular team in the regular league next year, but my competitive days are behind me and I can no longer keep up with them young kids full of energy.

Have yourselves a great day.

Hi ho hi ho

Monday

All of that weekend fun has now come to an end, it's now time to start doing what it is we do for a living once again. Let's stick those collective noses back on the grindstone and churn out another fun filled week of doing what it is we do.

Well it's a day of field work for me today as I will be out in the field here locally doing a little bit of listing work. It's different from what I normally do when I take the computer out and actually do interviews, it's listing all the residences in an area that we will do down the road in the next coming two years.

It's a double header softball night for us in the old farts division. We have games at 6:00 and 7:00 but we're going to struggle to be able to field a full team this evening. I guess in the old fart division we have a couple of guys injured and a few more going on vacation all at the same time. We will however be there tonight to play the team that beat us for the Championship last year, only they have split their team into two different teams and we play them both this evening. Should be an interesting evening of Softball.

Have yourselves a great day today.

Hi ho hi ho

Monday

Well here we are again, looking at the end of a weekend and the start of another fun filled week of doing what it is that we do for a living. Michelle is back in the office today and I'll be at home possibly taking my first day off in some time.

It's Softball once again, our first game of the season is this evening, so I guess I should dig my stuff out and throw it in the back of the car. We've had one practice but I wasn't able to make it to that due to me working, so this will be my first outing of the year. We're playing IDK, a team we matched up pretty well with last year, so let's see how this turns out for us. Smitty and I will be returning to the same field with the same team for probably the first time in over 20 years. He played with us last year, but due to work never made it to any games, so I'm kind of excited to get back on the field with basically a number of guys from my very first BOPARC team. We are once again sponsored by Whitetail Crossing.

It was a pretty uneventful Sunday for us, the weather was rather blah and I went out working for about an hour or so doing field work, but that was basically me going and knocking on doors where no one has been answering after numerous attempts. Michelle is still feeling a little under the weather, hopefully she'll be fine this morning.

Have yourselves a great day today.

Monday

Here we go again, weekends are always a little too short and now we back ton starting another fun filled week of work. So it's time to stick our collective noses back on the grindstone for another fun filled week of doing what it is we do for a living.

Tonight is the last regular game of the season for the White Tail Crossing 50+ Softball team. We're 4-5 on the year and are looking to make it to 5-5 on the season this evening. I'm not sure about playoffs or when they even start, but many have already started this year for other leagues. So if you want to watch a few legends of BOPARC Softball, come on out tonight at 7:00 to Ogden Field and have yourself a peek, this may be the last chance this year.

The rest of my week I can't really say much about. I'm still working Fairmont for RTI, but I also have possible softball playoffs and a few other things possibly going on this week. It should be a busy and diverse one, that is for sure. It'll slow down next week as we'll be heading north for the Buffett Concert. We still have a couple of tickets if anyone feels the sudden need to buy a couple. The concert is next Tuesday.

Have yourselves a great day today and make the most of it. Go White Tail Crossing

Hi ho hi ho

Good Luck Chad

For most of us it is the start of the work week. The day the weekend ends and we all head back to our places of business and do what it is we do for a living to start another work week. It's not exactly a day that any of us gets excited about to say the very least.

Today however Michelle's son Chad starts a new job at West Virginia University. It's more money than he was making at his previous job and a chance to continue to work with animals which has been his passion. Good Luck to Chad today as you start at WVU. It was a short journey, but you have made it despite what you may have feared.

For Michelle and I it is back to the office and business as usual. Nothing major on either of our agendas this week, although we will be attending a couple special kids birthday party this weekend. I do have another Softball game tonight, we were off last week and return to action this evening at 7:00 PM at Ogden Field. Come on over and cheer on a bunch of old guys making fools of themselves, well namely this old guy making a fool of himself...lol

Have yourselves a super fantastic day.

Hi ho hi ho

Hump Day

Well that is a couple of days down, a couple more ahead of us, that just means once we get up and over today's noon time hump it will be all downhill working towards a three day Memorial Day Weekend!!!

Well I did survive Monday's Softball double header. I have a lot of work to do to get my timing and everything back, but I'm pretty confident that as the season rolls along I'll be somewhat back to form. I know Monday night I did not have my timing and was pretty apprehensive swinging the bat at first, but as we played on and I saw I wasn't going to injure either of my torn labrums any further I started to feel more comfortable in there. It was nice to return after a nearly 6 year layoff.

Looking ahead and towards this upcoming weekend I know that we have a small picnic get together planned for Coopers Rock Saturday, but no one seems to be saying anything and we'll just have to wait and see how that all works out. The Cicadas are not as prevalent as previously feared just yet, so this may be a decent weekend weather permitting. And I just looked at my phone and it says Morgantown is supposed to be sunny and 90° on Saturday!!!! Maybe it will be time to get our picnic on.

With as much rain as we have had over the past few weeks, it's nice to see that we are going to have a nice little break in the weather and nice weather for the upcoming weekend!


Have yourselves a superfantastic day, mine just got a whole lot better.

Hi Ho hi ho

Tuesdays Tidbits

* Well that dreaded day we refer to as Monday is now behind us and we are staring straight down the barrel of a Tuesday, I can't think of a better reason to do a tidbits.

* I always write my blogs a day early, meaning that this was written before I played a double header softball game last night. Per Charlie Berry I will probably be saying I am Soooo Sore today. How will I get through work. He's probably right and I'm probably in pain...lol

* It has been 19,168 days since my birth, using my 905 day calendar that makes me about 21 years old, although this morning I am probably wishing I still had my 21 year old body to recover from last night.

* It has been 4,391 days since I graduated college at West Virginia University.

* Michelle and I went out on our very first date 2,992 days ago, it's amazing as bad as the movie that I picked was that she stuck around.

* 2,216 days ago at around 4:00 in the morning I proposed marriage to Michelle.

* 1,753 days ago in front of our closest friends and family at the Marilla Center Michelle became Michelle Hall.

* I have around 5,669 days to go until I retire, give or take a few hundred here or there, one way or the other of course.

* There are only 2,307 days before my beloved Mountaineers lay an ass whipping on the  Pitt Panthers in Football once again.

* There are only 254 days until Ground Hogs Day, but I see Phil was spying on me this past weekend when we were down in Weston.

* I have 221 more days until I publish my Goodbye 2016 blog, recalling my year based on events that are posted right here in my blog.

* You have 215 days left to do your Christmas shopping, there is still plenty of time but it's never too early to start planning.

* I have 191 days to go until the next anniversary of my 21st Birthday using that old and outdated 365 day calendar.

* There are 137 days to go until the Springs Festival, hopefully this year we will be able to make it there with no problems.

* We are 110 days away from our next cruise, I found out this weekend that another couple that we have cruised with a couple of times before will be on this cruise once again with us.

* We are just 91 days away from seeing Jimmy Buffett in concert once again in Burgettstown. Tickets are still on sale, which is pretty amazing since he used to sell out in minutes.

* In just 74 more days Michelle and I will be celebrating our Fifth Wedding Anniversary together, the best years of my life as I would refer to them.

* It's getting closer, we are just 40 days away from the Third Annual Friends and Family Picnic at Krepps Park. I'm just happy this was just not a one year deal and has continued year to year. It's just a day for everyone to take a few hours out, have fun, eat and talk to a bunch of great people.

* There are only a mere 28 more days to go until Summer.

* This is the 4,472nd blog that I have written for George's Journal, believe it or not it will be coming on 12 years this September since I started writing this Journal.

* Here is our 10 game season Softball Schedule for this season. All games are played on Mondays at either 6:00 or 7:00 on Ogden Field (last field and it has no lights). Hopefully I can survive the entire season.

* I did have to search for my Softball gear on Monday, it was packed away in a closet and I haven't used it in years. My glove and cleats are still intact =) but I might need a new batting glove.

* We do have a small picnic planned for this Saturday, not sure if that is going to happen now as the people who said they were coming may not now. Have to wait and see.

* Anyone seeing any Cicadas yet?

* Have yourselves a great day and pass the Bengay, I'm sore.

* Hi ho hi ho

I'm Back

It was 2010, going on six years ago that I retired from a long career of playing slow pitch softball every summer. My summers were filled with friends, great teams and a lot of memories that all ceased with the breakup of the old MiHaley's softball team.

In 2011 Michelle and I were planning our wedding and we were getting ready to start our lives together. I had been losing interest in the game for the last couple of years that I had been playing. It got to the point where it became more of a chore than something I loved so I retired from a game that I loved playing for so long.

Last fall I ran into an old team mate at Lowes and mentioned we should try to get into the new over 50 league that Boparc was going to try to do, well he took it to heart, got us a great sponsor in Whitetail Crossing and put together a roster of some pretty decent ballplayers and this is the beginning of the Championship we plan on winning this season.

Our first games, actually two games, will be this evening at 6:00 and 7:00 at Ogden Field. It will be nice to get together with four other members of my first BOPARC softball team, the old Press Box as well as a few others that I have played with or against the past few years.

My skills I'm quite sure have diminished, I'm probably no longer the feared hitter that I once was, as I have not picked up bat and swung it probably since this picture was taken years ago. I am eagerly anticipating returning to the fields that I spent so many summers on playing a game that I loved and returning to playing a game that I loved so much.

Have yourselves a great day and hope I survive tonight...lol

Hi ho hi ho

Photo Flashback Thursday

Once a week I like to take a little bit of time out and look through all of the pictures that I have either taken, scanned or stolen from the internet through the years. Little lost moments in time that I like to briefly relive and write a little story about. Sometimes it's pretty easy finding those precious moments, and sometimes it's not that easy. It is however always a whole lot of fun.

This weeks pic goes back to when I last played softball during the summers and the last group of guys that I ever played with. What a great group of guys, guys I used to refer to as the boys of summer, they were your summertime family.

This picture was the MiHaley's team, and we are out on the back deck of MiHaley's drinking a few beers and I think Michael even hooked us up with a TV out there.

I do have to say that this was the time of the year we really started to get organized for the Summer Softball League. I do have to say that I loved the 27 or 28 seasons that I played at BOPARC. Each team and each Summer had their own unique times and experiences. I played on a number of great teams, but never won the post season Championship but I have about a half a dozen or so regular season Championships. They only started to award them in the last 10 years or so, so the great Sterling, Heiskell and King, Judies Lounge, Recourse and MVP teams didn't get a whole lot of love.

I do miss it, but I'll always remember and cherish those summers.

Hi ho hi ho

Photo Flashback Thursday

Once a week I like to take a little bit of time out and look through of my pictures, this week I have to refer to my online pictures as I am reformatting my desktop computer and select one special picture to write about. A lost moment in time to relive in my blog and reflect upon. Some times it;s pretty easy, and sometimes it challenging since my PC is down, but it is always a lot of fun.

This weeks picture goes to the end of an era, unless I am mistaken, this is from my last at bat in my last game of my long softball career. A softball career that extended for 27 years, playing on some great teams, with some great team mates and also playing on teams that would do nothing but fight and argue with ourselves.

It was the one thing I always looked forward to every summer, meeting with my boys of summer and stepping foot on the playing field and battling an opponent to say we are better.

I met a lot of great people who turned out to be lifelong friends on the softball field. The worst injury I ever saw was in the next to last game I ever played and it was a team mate.

My career is over with today, my shoulders could not take throwing or hitting a ball, much less with the velocity I used to deliver it, I did have a very nice arm that was pretty accurate earlier in my career. It bothers me a little to no longer be playing, but I knew the last few years I played that my skills were diminishing and I wasn't who I used to be.

Hi ho hi ho

Surprised

I have to hand it to Jenny, Chris's wife and his parents, they planned and executed his surprise 40th birthday party to perfection. Michelle and I as well as a few other friends headed to Apollo PA yesterday to partake in the surprise.

Chris is scheduled to fly to Dallas today for some function with the Big XII and he was going to stay at his parents house. Perfect opportunity to surprise him, especially since his birthday is not for as few more months.

It was great to be around some of the boys of summer again for me, they are a very special group of guys who all just got a little older and have retired from playing softball, with the exception of Chris who is playing this year.

After surprising Chris we traveled to the other side of Pittsburgh, past the airport to where Michelle's family is from to help her nice Abby celebrate her birthday. Today is actually Abby's birthday, so an extended BLOG Happy Birthday to Abby.

It was a day of a lot of traveling, traveling to a couple points and back to Morgantown that basically formed a big triangle. Apollo ton the northeast of Morgantown, Beaver about an hour an a half west of Apollo and then back southeast to Morgantown. Sometimes it's just good to get out of town for the day.

Watched the Buccos win again last night to got to 13 games over .500. We've managed to watch both game this weekend.

Have a great day.

Photo Flashback Thursday

It's once again that time of the week when I take a little bit of time out and look through all of my older pictures and select just one picture to tell a little story about. Some times it's pretty easy finding that picture and sometimes it's pretty difficult, but it is always a lot of fun and one of my favorite blogs of the week to write. 

I thought I would celebrate yesterday being the first day of summer with a picture of a group of guys I used to refer to as the boys of summer. 

If you know me, I played softball for a lot of years at BOPARC, I'm currently in my second year of retirement with another goal in mind, but my heart will always be on the fields. It was the time of the year that I always looked forward to the most and I was fortunate enough top play on a number of pretty good teams through the years. 

The photo from this weeks flashback is an old photo of the last year we were Prime Time. We had lost a few players from the Championship run the year before, but we picked up a few players too. This was the season we got moved up and were tearing up the league until we got to the playoffs and the team we played magically was about 10 players different than what we had clobbered earlier in the year. IOW they picked up a bunch of illegal roster players, most of which were open flight players, and they turned the table on us. 

I miss playing the game, half of me wants to continue to play but I know I can no longer compete at the level that I want to. My heart will always be out on those fields though. Some of my fondest memories. 

Hi ho hi ho

Softball

We had another fun filled night of softball last night, and my sweetie grabbed the camera and did a great job getting as many PICTURES as she could while the game was going on and before. That coupled with a few from last nights pictures allowed me to create an album on my site of some memories over the last two nights.

Last night our winning streak came to a halt against team Budweiser. Unfortunately for us old timers, the remaining schedule as well as last nights game will be against solid playoff teams.

My highlight of the night came on a play at the plate where Adam Treadway came up firing a perfect strike from the outfield to help me nail a runner at the plate on a close play. Tready is VERY fast, and last night he demonstrated he has a very strong and accurate arm under pressure. All the credit goes to him, I didn't even have to move my glove, it was an absolute perfect throw. He does it again we might have to find him an agent and start paying him next season..LOL

We're off next week and resume in two weeks before closing out the 2010 campaign the following week.

I love this time of the year and the time I spend with my brothers of summer.

Oh well, for now it's hi ho hi ho

We have a winning streak

Yep, I am starting to think we have found that winning form that just hasn't been there the last two years in softball. We have added some new personnel, but with Casey coming back and adding a few solid players, we have found our fundamentals that helped us win so many games over few year stretch.

We won last night 6-5 with solid defense, teamwork, a few strategic coaching moves and hustle. It seems like we are actually good again.

After a nice hard fought 6-5 victory over Mylan Pharmaceuticals, we headed over to MiHALEY'S for a few beers, some good food and a little bit of a trivia battle between Chris and Ryan.

These are the times that I look forward to all year. These are also the days I will look back upon when years after I have played my last inning.

I love this team and this game.

Michelle says to tell everyone hello. Maybe she can do a guest blog sometime (hint hint)

First Win of the Season

Even thought we played in Lake Morgantown last night, we managed to pull out a 15-9 win for our first victory of the 2009 season. A day after all of the rain had set in to Morgantown and everything was water logged, we played a good seven innings of softball last night.

After the game the team wanted to go to MiHALEY'S for Cinco de Mayo. As most of you know I write this the night before so it posts in the early AM, at the time I am actually writing this I still haven't decided on whether I am going to walk across the street yet.

Maybe sometime in the near future the weather will warm up and dry up.

Start of the Season

Well we started out our season last night with one in the loss column as we dropped our opening game 5-8. USSSA is now using a .40 core mush ball that just does not fly anymore.

After the loss we all took a trip to MiHALEY'S to drown our sorrows and have some great food. I tried a Mushroom and Swiss Burger and oh my was it awesome.

Oh well, out early today and I'll be in Pittsburgh all day on business. I actually have to give a 30 minute presentation at the DOE about the GIS capabilities within RDS. Wish me luck.

PLAY BALL!!!!!!!!

It is now officially official, as opposed to being kind of official, our 2009 softball season is upon us and starts tonight at 7:00.

In 2009 we will be MiHALEY'S after playing the last two seasons as MVP Paintball. We will be wearing our MVP shirts the first game or two, until our new uniforms arrive. I will once again be donning my old number 33 this season. It's my old number from high school football that I have never abandoned and kept through the years.

I have to say anyone who knows me, knows that been playing softball at BOPARC for quite a few decades now. There are guys on my team who were not even born yet when I first started playing softball as the Fun Quads (what ever that means) and the Press Box some years ago.

I no longer have that spring in my step that I once had, but I think over 25 years we have all lost a step or two. I'm still out there and still doing what it is I love so much and look forward to right after the last pitch of the last game of the previous season.

It is once again...Softball!!!!!