A Great Summer Day

Summer is finally here. Today is a great day. We started with baseball games, to finish the KYS season. A loss for the Mets and we are in the lower bracket for the tournament next week.

Following the games, a little light yard work, refurbishing the pond, with new fish, a new filter and new plants. Colleen got to pick and name a new fish, classically called "Goldie" (very original).

The kids spent two hours at the pool and Dad got a two hour afternoon nap. The pool was newly cold, which won't last. Two weeks from now, the water will move from cool to tepid to bathwater warm by August. The nap was a classic warm, laying in the sun, in-and-out sleep, with the radio lightly going with classical music.

We grilled hamburgers and hotdogs for dinner, with fresh corn on the grill. A great dinner for a great day. The simple satisfaction of a day restfully spent. The night closed with flashlight tag with the neighborhood kids in pack, while we eagerly await the fireflies.

Knox Catholic wins TN State Soccer Championship A/AA

Knox Catholic won the Tennessee State Championship for soccer, beating CAK (5 time state champs) 3-0. Good coverage for the game at the following links:

WBIR Coverage.

Knoxnews.com article.

WVLT TV Sports Extra.

Life Lessons - The fine art of water-balloon tying

A great afternoon, heading into summer. I spent a few minutes this afternoon passing on a crucial life skill to my sons. Most dad's would pass on business skills, discussions of the opposite sex, or fighting arts. Today, though, I transcended all these more mundane topics and passed on the fine art of how to tie a water balloon. A skill much used in the summer months at our house, this crucial skill is slowing dying in the U.S., I am afraid. More water balloons, anyone?

NPR misses with the Body Farm report

NPR had an article today related to the Charles Manson ranch near Death Valley, and in the article referred to the Oak Ridge National Lab Body Farm. As a proud Tennessee alumni, I was unhappy with the inaccuracy of the reporting. NPR is usually better about checking their facts and relationships, especially when they themselves have reported on the Body Farm in past articles. The Body Farm, started by Dr. Bill Bass, is associated with the University of Tennessee, not ORNL.

Knox Catholic heading to the State Soccer Playoffs

Knox Catholic is heading for the state soccer playoffs this week. Games Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday (as long as they keep winning). I believe that the most serious competition will be CAK out of the loser's bracket. We have to see about another split soccer weekend this weekend!

Good luck Catholic!

Severe Weather - Knoxville

Maureen and I drove through the area of severe weather in Knoxville. Evidently, a microburst rolled through Knoxville. We drove through the Rocky Hill area and Northshore and Papermill area. At Aubrey's in Papermill, we noticed cars up to the door in water.



The creek at Northshore and Baum Drive (in front of Sacred Heart) was running at the bridge in front of the Cathedral and over the bridge at the Chancellery Office.

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A Major Defficiency in Auto Web Sites

I am in the market for a new car, as I have a 16 year old soon-to-be licensed driver. Don't get me started on the insurance costs..... Anyway, with a large family, I have special requirements (at least five seats). As I have scanned and scanned new and used car web sites, I have not found, on a single site, how many can fit in a car. No listing of number of seat belts, no listing of number of passangers, nothing. I have looked in the build section, in the specifications, on the front pages, nothing. I challenge the web site designers and marketers to fix this greivous deficiency.