Almost here, Almost here

The time is almost here. My family is coming out to see me, and I can't wait. For those of you not up to speed, I am currently living in Calgary, for work, while I wait for our house to sell in Guelph. At that point Jody and Colton will join me, but until then they will be staying out in Ontario. I left them back on Monday and drove across the country to Calgary, and already it seems like it's been an eternity. I can't imagine what its going to be like if this process takes a month or two. Jody will probably kill me for using this picture, but I love it. She sent it to me last Tuesday, and it made me want to turn around instantly and go home. This week will probably zoom by, but I'll make sure I do all I can to make the most of it. In case my family reads this, I love you guys, and can't wait to see you.
Also, has everyone gone to my wife's photography blog yet? Any of you Calgary folks who might be interested in some nice photography, get ready she'll be out here soon. To get an idea of what she has to offer, go to http://www.jacphotography.blogspot.com/ She does all kinds of photography, portraits, scenery, fine art, weddings, etc. So go check it out. I do believe she has a link to her website too. http://www.jacphotography.ca/
I also want to give her a shout out, she sold a wonderful piece at one of her photography competitions. It was really exciting for her, and I'm so proud of her. Jody, you need to put that picture up on your blog, by the way.

One game away from disaster

Well everyone, my Flames are going to take years off my life, I swear. Last night everyone in the city was charged and excited for game 5. The best of seven series was tied, and the Flames had all the momentum in the world, heading into a tough Chicago arena. I had my jersey on and was expecting another exciting, nail biting, physical war like the previous four games. I was expecting my Flames to make a big push to take control of the series, instead what happened was unexpected and disappointing to say the least. The game puck dropped and a debacle ensued, the Flames stumbled right out of the gate and by the game's end were flat on their backs. The final result was a 5-1 loss, our best goalie was pulled, our teams confidence shaken, and a must win situation for the rest of the series.
Here is what kills me though. I read the paper today to see the post game reviews and reactions from the coach and players. I wanted to see what excuses they had as to why they got dominated from the puck drop. Why was it that they didn't even seem like they were in the game? The results in the article were this "We just weren't prepared for the push they were going to come with, we'll be ready next time." and "As the coach, I'm supposed to have our players prepared for games, and I didn't have them prepared." This was infuriating to me! How do you not come into a playoff game not prepared! You are supposed to be a team of elite professionals. You get payed millions of dollars to play your game at a very high level. The entire culmination of your season is supposed to be geared towards winning the Stanley Cup, HOW CAN YOU NOT BE PREPARED FOR A PLAYOFF GAME! for the last 3 years my beloved Flames have exited the playoffs in the first round, you'd think that after three years of early exits, they'd be more than prepared to make sure they had success this year.
What scares me about their attitude is this, they are a veteran team, getting beat by a young team where 14 of 23 players are entering the playoffs for the first time, and they don't seem to care. This is supposed to be a Men vs. Boys series, and yet our Flames looked like the boys last night. Now if they are having this much trouble against a young, green, Blackhawks team, what hope do they have to advance past a hardened veteran team next round in Vancouver? I just don't understand the "We weren't prepared" excuse. How can you not be prepared for a playoff game? When you know what its going to take to win, and when you know that your opponent is equally as desperate to win, how can you not be prepared. I just don't understand how professional athletes, guys who are payed millions for their craft, can got into a major game and not be prepared.
So the situation is dire at this point. The Flames must win the next 2 games in order to live another day. I know they can do it, I have faith that they have the talent to pull it off..... as long as they're prepared of course. If they don't there are going to have to be some major changes around here, starting with the coach, then moving on to some of our players. So here's hoping guys, GO FLAMES GO. Let's get on our horse and play top hockey!
P.S. Some of you may say injuries have played a part in this, and to an small extent, you're right, but it's not as large a factor. Everyone at this time of year plays hurt.

Hello From Out West

Howdy folks,

Yes I have finally made it out here after a very grueling 34 hour drive. I drove down through the States this time as opposed to taking the Trans Canada, like I did when I moved out to Ontario. I have to say the drive for the most part was OK. The scenery in Illinois and Wisconsin was nice. Minnesota was ok, but nothing special. North Dakota was absolutely depressing. It almost seemed for the most part like a ghost state. I was driving through towns that looked like they've been abandoned for decades minus the few dilapidated houses or trailers where you could still see some signs of life. The whole state seems to be flooded too. On more than one occasion I litter ally drove through a river that had crested over the road. That was scary, because you honestly couldn't see if the was still road in front of you. As I was driving the highway close to the Saskatchewan border I would look on either sides of the road and see dirt roads leading up to farm houses and they were either still under a river, or washed out. I couldn't help but wonder what the people were doing with themselves, as they all of a sudden find themselves captive in their own homes with no real way to get out. Boy, I could not get out of that state fast enough. So I finally entered Canada again at around 11:00 pm on Tuesday night, so I decided to stay over in Weyburn. After that I finished my travel into Calgary. That actually was the craziest part of the whole trip. I encountered a bunch of wind the whole way, but for the most part it was a nice day. When I got to Swift Current, the temperature was 24 degrees, and everyone was in shorts and t shirts. When I got to Medicine Hat, AB it was 18 degrees. After that I got to Brooks where the temperature was 12 degrees, but only an hour down the road in Strathmore, the temperature dropped to 2 degrees. 20 Minutes later I ran into a full out snowstorm on Calgary's edge, and it was -2 degrees. Talk about crazy weather.

Well, while I am glad to finally be in Calgary, I really miss my family. I knew it would be hard to be away from Jody and Colton, but I wasn't prepared for it, and really; how could you be. Luckily I have them coming out to visit next week. What a fun time we are going to have. I took two days off for vacation to spend with them. This also reminds me, Colton experienced his first kiss already. He's a little player when it comes to the ladies. Apparently his charm was a little too much for Gracie (his friend Mommy babysits on Wednesday's) to resist. He didn't seem like he was really up for it though, I mean after all; he's got a reputation as a flirt, and doesn't want people thinking he's tied down. I laughed out loud when I saw this picture.

I apologize to all my readers for the long break between my posts while I moved. Now that I'm stable again, I'll get right back into it. Be prepared for tonight's post as I set the stage for game 5 of the Flames/Blackhawks game. For any of you who may not be up on things, this has quickly become a brutal ware between 2 teams, and has captured the attention of the hockey world. It's going to be exciting!