Vandal Football Schedule 2005

Sanity returns to UI football scheduling, as the benefits of being in the
WAC are immediately evident. We do not know the dates yet, but the Vandals
will have FOUR home WAC games in 2005 - Fresno State, Hawaii, Utah State,
and Louisiana Tech - at this point all scheduled for the Kibbie Dome!
Conference road games will be BSU, Nevada, New Mexico State, and San Jose
State. The nonconference schedule is all road games - but sensible short
trip road games. WSU(possibly in Seattle), Washington, and UNLV. Pinch us
we must be dreaming - 5 games in Idaho, two in Nevada, two in Washington,
one in California, and one in New Mexico. Three games within easy reach of
our thousands of California alums and the longest road trip is to Las
Cruces. After the craziness of the last four years, it is truly a dream
come true.

We know, we know, it is still a tough schedule, but here are some things to
think about. Five to seven teams on the schedule will have new coaches.
Washington was 1-10 this year, the worst record in UW history and will have
a new coach. UNLV was 2-9 this year and John Robinson announced his
retirement. San Jose State was 2-9 this year and fired Fitz Hill. Utah
State was 3-8 this year and fired Mick Dennehy. New Mexico State got tired
of Tony Samuels team's erratic performances and fired him. Boise State's
Dan Hawkins and Fresno State's Pat Hill are on the "short list" of several
very big schools, who can easily outbid anything that BSU or FSU might
offer. We expect both of them to get offers too big to say no to. We like
the fact that as many as seven of UI's 2005 opponents will have first year
coaches and staffs. Not saying that means UI will win 7 games, but there
are more opportunities for upsets than normal. And even the Cougs - who are
still darn good - were just 5-6 this year and all their wins were by two or
three points - except against UI. Just some food for thought.

- Commentary by Duane Rimel

Christmas Music

The first thing I do after Thanksgiving is break out the Christmas CDs. I love Christmas music, but only for a short time. After December 25th I don't want to hear another "jingle" or "fa la la" for eleven more months.

My favorite traditional Christmas song is "Silent Night"... Here are two versions that are popular at my house right now, in MP3 format for your enjoyment:

1. Clay Aiken - Silent Night

2. John Denver - Silent Night

Click here to buy the new Clay Aiken Christmas CD at Amazon.com

And click here to buy the John Denver Rocky Mountain Christmas CD at Amazon.com

Later this week I'll post my favorite non-traditional Christmas song.

Happy Thanksgiving

Hagadone Revises Street Plan

All I have to read are the words

"in a satellite call from his yacht in the Caribbean"

and I'm pretty much against whatever he's saying.

The Gardens

I was up at the Resort last week and snapped this photo of where Hagadone wants to build his garden and new tower:

Dollars and Sense in College Football

Why does the University of Idaho want to compete at the highest division of college football?

Easy answer: Money.

Private Donations to the Vandal Scholarship Fund during the last year in the Big Sky: $604,000
Private Donations to the Vandal Scholarship Fund during 2004: $1,070,000

Football Game Guarantees in the Big Sky (5-year average): $125,000
Football Game Guarantees in I-A (5-year average): $1,091,000

Advertising Revenue in the Big Sky: $114,000
Advertising Revenue in 2004: $475,000

The most successful athletic capital campaign in UI history took place after the Vandals made the move to I-A, with $13 million in private money to build the new Vandal Athletic Center.

The average 1-AA football program loses $3 million per year.

Anyone who continues to say that the University of Idaho should be playing football at the I-AA level obviously does not understand the financial realities of college athletics.

One last thought:

The University of Idaho's academic peer group is composed of 15 land grant institutions in the western United States. Fourteen of those 15 schools
compete in 1-A football, including WAC members, Utah State, New Mexico State, and Nevada. Entering the WAC next season, the UI is exactly where it needs to be.

Get on board with the State of Idaho's premier University, and GO VANDALS!

Marines in Fallujah

A couple of thoughts about the Marine who killed the wounded insurgent in Fallujah...

In training, the Marines are taught that the enemy is at his most dangerous when wounded.

And, there is a saying in the Marine Corps, "It's better to be judged by twelve than be carried by six."

Sounds to me like that soldier did the best thing he could to ensure the safety of himself and his squad.

Cougars and Huskies, Oh My!

It's time to say what everyone is thinking....

Perhaps the Huskies and Cougars should explore moving down a level to I-AA football. They'd lose money hand over fist, but at least they'd have a chance to win a few games.

Taco Bull Arena

Bob Kustra, President of Boise Junior Coll... er, I mean Boise State University, seems to think that the Idaho Statesman represents public opinion in Idaho... Speaking about the decision to rename the BSU Pavilion "Taco Bell Arena"...

"Almost everyone has supported the decision to keep the contract and the Taco Bell Arena name," Kustra said.

An editorial that ran Sunday in The Idaho Statesman also supported the arena name, Kustra said.

'When one of our major opinion makers in our state has an opportunity to weigh in, it suggests the temper of the community doesn't lie where you are today," he told faculty members.

Uh-huh. This is the same newspaper that endorsed John Kerry for President. Temper of the community.... Riiiiiight.... That "quality" BSU education must be rubbing off on Kustra.

Divorce

Some facts to mull over:

25% of adults have had at least one divorce during their lifetime.

Christians have a higher divorce rate than agnostics and atheists.

The highest divorce rates in the country are in the Bible Belt. The lowest rates are in the Northeast.

California's no-fault divorce law was signed into law in 1969 by Governor Ronald Reagan. The rest of the nation quickly followed California's lead. By 1974, forty-five states had passed no-fault statutes of their own. By 1985, every state in the union was a no-fault state.

Michael Reagan's definition of divorce:

"Divorce is where two adults take everything that matters to a child---the child's home, family, security, and sense of being loved and protected--and they smash it all up, leave it in ruins on the floor, then walk out and leave the child to clean up the mess."

The Sound of Music

Many years ago a friend of mine stated, "If I want to hear music, I just turn on the radio." This left me aghast.

The meaning behind my friend's statement was "Music is just background noise to me, so it doesn't really matter what I'm hearing." I meet too many people who think this way... It's just background noise. I don't understand that mentality, as I find much joy in certain styles of music.

Recently a relative told me, "I don't do music." Again, I was just plain astonished at this. That's like saying "I don't do happiness. I don't do joy."

I do not let a day go by without listening to at least a few minutes of music. For the most part I do not like heavy metal, rap, blues, electronica, and country (although I do have a soft spot for Willie Nelson and Patsy Cline). I also do not appreciate the corporate-manufactured pop/rock that masquerades as art. There's plenty of quality music out there that can touch an emotion, but you won't find it on Clear Channel. You'll find it in artists such as David Mead, Iron & Wine, Pernice Brothers, and Chris Rice.

Whatever your taste, however, you shouldn't let the day pass without a little music for your ears. It's an excellent stress reducer and really helps cut out the clutter. I do some of my best thinking while the tunes are cranked up.

Improving Highway 95

This has been talked about for decades.

The plan still is being developed, but could include moving up such major projects as going to four lanes from Lewiston to Moscow, and possibly all the way from Lewiston to Coeur d'Alene, and upgrading the route north of Coeur d'Alene to Sandpoint and Bonners Ferry.

"Those areas of Highway 95 that still follow the roadbed that was put out in 1939 are no longer adequate – there's an extreme safety situation in many of those areas," said Sen. John Goedde, R-Coeur d'Alene. "Cars simply didn't go as fast and trucks weren't as big in 1939. So the highway has not been upgraded to meet modern expectations of a highway."

Goedde also points to the troubled highway as a cause of the longstanding "psychological division between north and south" in Idaho. "I think a major portion of that is because there is no good all-season highway to get residents from North Idaho to the Capitol, without going through two other states," he said. "So it seems like we're the ugly stepchild up here."

Do we really want all those Southern Idahoans visiting us? If they discover how beautiful it is in North Idaho, they'll never go back.

Family Time

"Attorney General John Ashcroft resigned today... He told the press he's retiring to spend more time wiretapping and interrogating his loved ones."
- Jimmy Kimmel

"New Jersey Governor Jim McGreevey has stepped down. He wants to spend more time embarrassing his family."
-David Letterman

Overheard

As someone who could live anywhere in the US, but chose Coeur d'Alene, I'm always curious about what brings people to this area to live.

Overheard in the Northwest Blvd. Subway:

Sandwich Artist: "You look too young to be out of college."
Young Lady: "I'm 22. I have a BA in Business from Syracuse."
SA: "Wow. Where you working?"
YL: "I'm looking for a job. This isn't a very good town for management positions."
SA: "Yeah. So what brought you to Coeur d'Alene?"
YL: "The snowboarding."

Huh?

Voice of the Vandals

Bob Curtis, voice of the Vandals for 50 years and over 500 football games, is retiring at the end of this season. There are only two more chances to hear him in action. This Saturday Idaho takes on North Texas at 4:05pm. And the next weekend, Nov. 20, Curtis wraps up his amazing career with a trip to the islands as the Vandals visit the University of Hawaii at 8:05pm. Both games can be heard on Coeur d'Alene radio 1080AM.

Tom Morris will be taking over for Curtis on play-by-play next season, but nobody will ever replace him as the Voice of the Vandals. Thanks for the great memories, Bob!

Jingle Bells

Tickets are now on sale for the Holiday Light Show Cruise on Lake Coeur d'Alene. The boats run each night from Nov. 26 to Jan. 2. $11.75 for adults, but FREE for kids 10 and under.

Don't!

To those of us who have children in our lives, whether they are our own, our grandchildren, nieces, nephews, or students.......

Whenever your children are out of control, you can take comfort from the thought that even God's omnipotence did not extend to his own children. After creating heaven and earth, God created Adam and Eve. And the first thing he said was "DON'T!"

"Don't what?" Adam replied.

"Don't eat the forbidden fruit," God said.

"Forbidden fruit? We have forbidden fruit? Hey Eve... we have forbidden fruit!!!!!!!"

"No way!"

"Yes way!"

"Do NOT eat the fruit!" said God.

"Why?"

"Because I am your Father and I said so!" God replied, wondering why he hadn't stopped creation after making the elephants. A few minutes later, God saw his children having an apple break and he was ticked!

"Didn't I tell you not to eat the fruit?" God asked.

"Uh huh," Adam replied.

"Then why did you?" said the Father.

"I don't know" said Eve.

"She started it!" Adam said.

"Did not!"

"Did too!"

"Did not!"

New Vandal Football Locker Room

Take a virtual tour of the new, and long overdue, Vandal Football Locker Room at the University of Idaho.

The photo above shows a tribute to slain Vandal Eric McMillan (#7).

A Few Jokes

"Do you know the ironic thing about this election? Do you realize that the Electoral College is the only college that President Bush ever did well in?"
- Jay Leno

"This is kind of sad, John Kerry went windsurfing today and nobody cared."
- Jay Leno

"There's already speculation that Hillary Clinton will be the nominee for the Democrats in 2008. Well, you have to admire the dedication of the Democratic party. They just lost an election, and they're already hard at work planning to lose the next one."
- Bill Maher

"Dick Cheney was thrilled. Today he was wearing his happy sneer."
- David Letterman

Clean It Up

It's that time of the year... Get your leaves and pine needles into the street (about a foot from the curb) this weekend. Clean-up begins Monday, November 15 in Coeur d'Alene. I'm going to have a five-foot-high wall of debris in front of my house. I think my neighbors have trained their trees to drop their needles on my lawn and roof.

Free Flowers at the Resort!

Last Wednesday, Duane Hagadone met with the Coeur d'Alene Pedestrian and Bicycle Advisory Committee to discuss routing the Centennial Trail through his proposed botanical garden.

Hagadone wants to close the garden at night to prevent vandalism. He told the committee that it "breaks his heart" to see his red geraniums torn up and thrown into the lake by vandals, and that he wouldn't mind as much if people took the plants home to put in their own gardens.

"You hear that, honey? They're giving away flowers down at the resort! Grab the wheelbarrow and let's go!"

I Took The Test

I took the test over at Blogthings.....

You Are a Conservative Democrat

Frankly, the way most other Democrats behave embarasses you greatly. You pride yourself on a high level of morals, and you have a good grasp on right and wrong. It's likely you think America needs to get back to its conservative, Judeo-Christian values. Why aren't you a Republican then? Because you believe the goverment helps more than hurts.

What political persuasion are you?

The Clinton Library

"Workers out in Arkansas are putting the finishing touches on the Bill Clinton Presidential Library. Library? It's a Hooters with a magazine rack."
- Jay Leno

Dirk the Family Man

This might be old news to some, but I just heard the rumor that our esteemed Governor Dirk Kempthorne had an affair with one of his staffers. The relationship produced a child, who now lives in Cascade with her mother. I guess the Idaho media have a hands-off policy with Kempthorne's personal life.

Conversation Killers

Instant conversation killer:

Ask a parent to share his or her parenting skills with you.

If it's the dad, he'll basically act clueless. And it's probably not an act.

If it's the mom, she'll get secretive. Like she's going to patent her brand of parenting, or she's afraid you'll call Child Welfare to come investigate her.

Mid-Life Crisis

My wife mentioned to me recently that I'm due for my mid-life crisis.

So I started to think about what I should do to regain my sense of youthfulness (isn't that what a midlife crisis is?).

My father bought a red sports car and had an affair. Not for me.

A friend of mine went skydiving. I don't really want to do that until I'm 80 and I won't care if the parachute doesn't open.

A cousin started shopping for clothes in trendy stores like Abercrombie & Fitch. But I'm not very fashionable, and those clothes wouldn't look good on me without some sort of lengthy and painful work-out program.

Nothing sounded very interesting. Until... I saw it. And it looked wonderful.

I bought an iPod.

Truly amazing... 10,000 songs on a tiny little handheld device? Instant access to any title or genre? Now I'm feeling young again! But not too young... My iPod is loaded with The Beatles, Crowded House, XTC, Chris Rice, The Beautiful South, Elvis Costello. You know, the NEW old fogey music.

Your Vote Counts, And Counts, And Counts!

Apparently some people's votes count more than others. No, I'm not talking about Duane Hagadone.

A computer glitch gave George Bush 3,893 extra votes at one precinct in Ohio.

I don't understand all of these computer foul-ups in this year's election. Why don't they turn over the process to the people who run the various state and multi-state lotteries?

I have never heard of any problems with the lottery's computer systems. You pencil in your numbers (votes), slip them into the machine, it's transmitted to a central computer, you get a receipt. Everybody's happy.

Michael Moore's 17 Reasons

Dear Friends,

Ok, it sucks. Really sucks. But before you go and cash it all in, let's, in the words of Monty Python, 'always look on the bright side of life!' There IS some good news from Tuesday's election.

Here are 17 reasons not to slit your wrists:

1. It is against the law for George W. Bush to run for president again.

2. Bush's victory was the NARROWEST win for a sitting president since Woodrow Wilson in 1916.

3. The only age group in which the majority voted for Kerry was young adults (Kerry: 54%, Bush: 44%), proving once again that your parents are always wrong and you should never listen to them.

4. In spite of Bush's win, the majority of Americans still think the country is headed in the wrong direction (56%), think the war wasn't worth fighting (51%), and don't approve of the job George W. Bush is doing (52%). (Note to foreigners: Don't try to figure this one out. It's an American thing, like Pop Tarts.)

5. The Republicans will not have a filibuster-proof 60-seat majority in the Senate. If the Democrats do their job, Bush won't be able to pack the Supreme Court with right-wing ideologues. Did I say "if the Democrats do their job?" Um, maybe better to scratch this one.

6. Michigan voted for Kerry! So did the entire Northeast, the birthplace of our democracy. So did 6 of the 8 Great Lakes States. And the whole West Coast! Plus Hawaii. Ok, that's a start. We've got most of the fresh water, all of Broadway, and Mt. St. Helens. We can dehydrate them or bury them in lava. And no more show tunes!

7. Once again we are reminded that the buckeye is a nut, and not just any old nut -- a poisonous nut. A great nation was felled by a poisonous nut. May Ohio State pay dearly this Saturday when it faces Michigan.

8. 88% of Bush's support came from white voters. In 50 years, America will no longer have a white majority. Hey, 50 years isn't such a long time! If you're ten years old and reading this, your golden years will be truly golden and you will be well cared for in your old age.

9. Gays, thanks to the ballot measures passed on Tuesday, cannot get married in 11 new states. Thank God. Just think of all those wedding gifts we won't have to buy now.

10. Five more African Americans were elected as members of Congress, including the return of Cynthia McKinney of Georgia. It's always good to have more blacks in there fighting for us and doing the job our candidates can't.

11. The CEO of Coors was defeated for Senate in Colorado. Drink up!

12. Admit it: We like the Bush twins and we don't want them to go away.

13. At the state legislative level, Democrats picked up a net of at least 3 chambers in Tuesday's elections. Of the 98 partisan-controlled state legislative chambers (house/assembly and senate), Democrats went into the 2004 elections in control of 44 chambers, Republicans controlled 53 chambers, and 1 chamber was tied. After Tuesday, Democrats now control 47 chambers, Republicans control 49 chambers, 1 chamber is tied and 1 chamber (Montana House) is still undecided.

14. Bush is now a lame duck president. He will have no greater moment than the one he's having this week. It's all downhill for him from here on out -- and, more significantly, he's just not going to want to do all the hard work that will be expected of him. It'll be like everyone's last month in 12th grade -- you've already made it, so it's party time! Perhaps he'll treat the next four years like a permanent Friday, spending even more time at the ranch or in Kennebunkport. And why shouldn't he? He's already proved his point, avenged his father and kicked our ass.

15. Should Bush decide to show up to work and take this country down a very dark road, it is also just as likely that either of the following two scenarios will happen: a) Now that he doesn't ever need to pander to the Christian conservatives again to get elected, someone may whisper in his ear that he should spend these last four years building "a legacy" so that history will render a kinder verdict on him and thus he will not push for too aggressive a right-wing agenda; or b) He will become so cocky and arrogant -- and thus, reckless -- that he will commit a blunder of such major proportions that even his own party will have to remove him from office.

16. There are nearly 300 million Americans -- 200 million of them of voting age. We only lost by three and a half million! That's not a landslide -- it means we're almost there. Imagine losing by 20 million. If you had 58 yards to go before you reached the goal line and then you barreled down 55 of those yards, would you stop on the three yard line, pick up the ball and go home crying -- especially when you get to start the next down on the three yard line? Of course not! Buck up! Have hope! More sports analogies are coming!!!

17. Finally and most importantly, over 55 million Americans voted for the candidate dubbed "The #1 Liberal in the Senate." That's more than the total number of voters who voted for either Reagan, Bush I, Clinton or Gore. Again, more people voted for Kerry than Reagan. If the media are looking for a trend it should be this -- that so many Americans were, for the first time since Kennedy, willing to vote for an out-and-out liberal. The country has always been filled with evangelicals -- that is not news. What IS news is that so many people have shifted toward a Massachusetts liberal. In fact, that's BIG news. Which means, don't expect the mainstream media, the ones who brought you the Iraq War, to ever report the real truth about November 2, 2004. In fact, it's better that they don't. We'll need the element of surprise in 2008.

Feeling better? I hope so. As my friend Mort wrote me yesterday, "My Romanian grandfather used to say to me, 'Remember, Morton, this is such a wonderful country -- it doesn't even need a president!'"

But it needs us. Rest up, I'll write you again tomorrow.

Yours,

Michael Moore

Silverwood 2005

A couple of things to look forward to at Silverwood next year.

First off, one of my favorite musicians, Chris Rice, will be appearing in concert on June 18th. This guy is an amazing singer/songwriter and I'm excited about finally seeing him live.

Second, Silverwood has announced that it will be open as a "Christmas Village" during the 2005 holiday season. I doubt that many of the rides will be operating, but it sounds like the train will be running and the Main Street will be lit up with festive lights and decorations. I hope they do this right. I'm a sucker for these kinds of old-fashioned Christmasy celebrations.

Check out Chris Rice's new Greatest Hits CD at Amazon.

Things That Keep Me Up At Night

Why is it "Lake Coeur d'Alene" but it's "Priest Lake"?

Or "Lake Michigan" versus "Redfish Lake"?

And what about "Lake Tahoe" and "Crater Lake"?

"Lake Powell" over "Flathead Lake" anyone?

See what I mean? Seriously, let me know if you have an answer so I can get some sleep.

Us vs Them

After the election, there sure are a lot of haters and gloaters out there. I don't understand that mentality. It's dismissive of the majority of Americans who either did not vote for Bush or did not vote at all. Why do we have to be in an "Us vs. Them" mindset? Why can't we adopt a "we agree to disagree" attitude and realize that everyone has differing opinions, outlooks, and life experiences. At the very least, turn your disdain of the politicians into humor. Laughing beats crying, any day.

I don't understand the fury and passion for politics. I wish people had that same passion for important matters, like their kids. The last PTO meeting at my kids' school was attended by eight parents. In a school of over four-hundred students! Unbelievable.

I don't expect we will ever be a "United" States again. There are too many people, on both sides of the political fence, who have an interest in seeing the population remain divided. But we can dream....

"There's not a liberal America and a conservative America--there's the United States of America. There's not a black America and white America and Latino America and Asian America; there's the United States of America. The pundits like to slice-and-dice our country into Red States and Blue States; Red States for Republicans, Blue States for Democrats. But I've got news for them, too. We worship an awesome God in the Blue States, and we don't like federal agents poking around our libraries in the Red States. We coach Little League in the Blue States and have gay friends in the Red States. There are patriots who opposed the war in Iraq and patriots who supported it. We are one people, all of us pledging allegiance to the stars and stripes, all of us defending the United States of America."
- Barack Obama

Three-Ring Government

Four more years of shenanigans from these clowns?

I'm stoked....

"There's no trick to being a humorist when you have the whole government working for you."
- Will Rogers

Voting Errors

Did you vote today?

Did your vote count?

Oliveria's Garden Spot

Dave Oliveria, of the Spokane Spokesman-Review, makes a convincing argument for Duane Hagadone's proposed downtown botanical gardens. My only concern remains parking. If they can figure that one out, then the whole idea sounds okay to me. And I do mean "okay".... Nothing to get excited about. The snow birds and the blue-haired bus tour crowd will love these new gardens, but year-round Coeur d'Alene residents probably don't care too much. We just don't want our easy access to the lake cut off, whether we're launching boats or sitting on a beach.

Color My World

Crayola has released a new limited edition box of crayons, with each state represented by its own unique color. Idaho got Tater Tan, which makes sense. Montana (Big Sky Blue), Oregon (Oregon Trail Sepia), and Alaska (Kodiak Brown Bear) also got colors that sound about right. Poor Washington, though.... Space Needle White?