Kyle Keefe

And the Winner Is...

Mike Haynes, Peter McNab and I wanted to draft our own fantasy teams for the All Star Game that took place on Sunday.  Each of us picked a team for the All Star Game for a little in-house battle.

The Rules were simple: Teams get 3 Forwards, 2 Defensemen, and 1 Goalie.  

Each Team gets one point for every point their players receive, plus a point for every save their goalie makes.

Congratulations to Mike Haynes and Peter McNab (they tied). It just goes to show you, Fantasy is just "Fantasy". I'm bitter. I admit it.

Here are the results:

TEAM "JERSEY SCORES"
(Peter McNab)

F    Eric Staal (2)
F    Martin St. Louis (2)
F    Patrick Sharp (3) MVP
D   Dan Boyle (1)
D   Zdeno Chara (2)
G   Cam Ward (10)

Total - 20 pts

TEAM "THE SLASHING IRISH"
(Mike Haynes)

F    Henrik Sedin (2)
F    Steve Stamkos (1)
F    Matt Duchene (1)
D   Shea Weber (4) Should have been MVP
D   Duncan Keith (1)
G   Henrik Lundqvist (11)

Total- 20 pts

TEAM "TOP SHELF"
(Kyle Keefe)

F    Alex Ovechkin (2)
F    Daniel Sedin (1)
F    Paul Stastny (2)
D   Nicklas Lidstrom (1)
D   Brent Burns (1)
G   Tim Thomas (11)

Total- 18 pts

 

I will leave you with just a few lasting impressions, a couple of things I took from the weekend...

1.  Zdeno Chara is not human. Slapping a puck nearly 107 mph should not be legal. Ask any goaltender.

2.  Jonas Hiller has the coolest mask in the NHL. Darth Vadar is jealous.

3.  Ovechkin did everything right. I like the crazy antics. I like his style. He gets his role. Throwing your stick is not cool, but it gave Matt Duchene the opportunity to become the first player in All Star History to attempt a penalty shot. Ovie is forgiven, I'm glad he did it actually, just wish the shot had gone in...that way I would have tied Peter for 2nd place.

4. I think you should be allowed to put mics on players more often. Hearing their side of the story is priceless. But I want to hear EVERYTHING! We'd have to broadcast the games on HBO.

5.  Interviews in the locker-room? I like it, but it would never fly in the regular season...especially if your down 4 goals at the break.

6.  What was with the cartoon characters that represent each team? And why wasn't the Avalanche super-hero guy the "main guy"?

7.  I think they should give the MVP to the player with the most assists. And I think instead of a car, they should give you a tank. That way, your dad or brother would never get it.

8.  Could they squeeze Brian, Keith and Bill onto a smaller desk? They looked too cozy.

9.  NHL players are the best athletes. No "if's" "and's" or "but's" about it.

10.  The weekend was a success. Now back to business.

 

Hug Your Kid Today

It’s easier said than done. In fact, we all SAY we do it, but are we really doing it enough?

I’m talking about loving your kid(s) every chance you get. There are so many ways to do it. The “big-daddy” hug. The “I’m gonna get you” hug. The “laying on your chest” hug. The “sneak up behind you” hug. My personal favorite…the kind of hug that “gets reciprocated” hug.

We adopted Quincy on the day she was born, April 2^nd, 2010. I had no idea what to expect, not only from her, but from me as well. How would she treat me? Would she love me the same way, even though I wasn’t her biological father? Would we have an immediate connection? What would she look like? What would she act like? I can tell you this, after 9 months, 22 days, 13 hours and 12 minutes….I love every second I get to spend with her. Just like YOU do. There is nothing different. Your love for your child is unconditional, but do you do it enough? Ask yourself, when was the last time you hugged your little angel or rascal? 2 hours ago? How about 2 days ago? Or 4 months ago? Some of our kids are already grown ups…they’re gone, they might even have kids of their own! But that shouldn’t stop us from doing what we were born to do…love our children.

The picture you see above was from a random Tuesday morning, playing with daddy. It’s awesome for a couple of reasons:

1. The innocence is undeniable
2. She got hugged 3 seconds after the picture was snapped. I couldn’t stand it.

I spend a lot of hours on my computer at work, occasionally taking a little 2 minute “stretch break” to look around at the pictures on my desk, or flip through the pictures on my computer.  I saw this picture and it reminded me of what’s really important to me. My wife and my daughter. I don’t want there to be a day that goes by, that those two girls don’t know how much I love them. We can’t take these days for granted…you just never know. So if you’re reading this, ask yourself, when was the last time you hugged your kid? If you’re anything like me, it was too long ago.

2 hours, Thai Food and The Bachelor....yes, The Bachelor

Monday night, but it feels like Sunday. We got a ton of stuff done around the house, Quincy's tired, so are Mom and Dad...time to check out, turn on the tube, and VEG. In case you were wondering, here's everything that happened in the world of television, and in the Keefe household from 6:13 and 7:24pm on Monday, January 17th, 2011. 

-Sweet and sour chicken and miso soup for me. Dana went with Avocado and Crab Salad (uggghh, I know, I was planning on splitting but no thanks).

-Do you know the number to Empire? I'll bet you do...the commercial jingle is nauseating but hard to forget...sing it with me..."1-800-588-23-hundred.....Empire...today."  Seriously, that commercial is on every 5 minutes.

-99 mph wind gusts on Loveland Pass today

-5 day forecast (Tue-49, Wed-40, Thur-30, Fri-46, Sat-44) - This food I'm eating can't be good for you...

-Capital One hired George Costanza's father to be there new spokesperson...he was hilarious on Seinfeld, but I have no interest in knowing "what's in his wallet".

-Favre retired, Melo is still here, and Cutler is in the NFC Championship.

-20 minute break...Dad's turn to put Q to bed....be right back....

-What did I miss?

-Dana has changed the channel to the "Cooking Channel.”  Nothing is worse than eating a pile of food and then watching people cook MORE food on TV. I might barf.

-My fortune cookie says, "Force equals too much; effort equals too little; being equals enough". Now you know I'm not making this stuff up, I'm not smart enough to think like that...what does that mean anyway? Can't I just have one that says, "Hey dude, there's a bunch of money buried under your big tree in the backyard".

-The Bachelor is on.

-This blog just got better.

-Or worse...

-Top 3 most over-used words on this show: Amazing, Connection, Journey - Doesn't look like Brad eats much sweet and sour chicken, Dana has drool dripping down the side of her face. I hate Brad.

-My dog Maddie just got relaxed and released something into the air that should not be legal....I need a minute....she needs to go outside.

-The EASY button from Staples. What a great idea. I love when the guy shakes the printer.

-Diane Sawyer looks pretty dang good for her age. she'll be doing an interview later this week with the husband of the congresswoman who was shot in Arizona.

-Do the METH commercials scare you as much as they scare me? Seriously, can't even watch. Good message, but........

-Shawntel N. a "Funeral Director" from Chico, California just made out with Brad 43 times filming an action flick.

-I think she's getting the rose.

-AT&T 4G commercials are hilarious. "Tacos outside Bill's Office".

-"Like...does every girl....like.....like on this show...have to use the work LIKE?"

-Crying like a 6-month old baby on first date = massive baggage.

-Chris Harrison has a pretty easy gig.....like...I'm like jealous.

-I put a ceiling fan up this weekend. Looking at it now. Feeling pretty good about it. Actually I paid a guy to do it....but I feel pretty good about "paying him" to do it.

-Michelle the "hairstylist" from Salt Lake City is a psycho....a good looking psycho, but definitely a cousin of Norman Bates.

-Just found out that Dana is "Linked in". Why? She's already on Facebook, MySpace, and God knows what else...now she has to be Linked In? I want to be on Linked out.

-2 more girls are crying on the bachelor...like really crying...like WOW.

-Enough Bachelor.

-Back to being a dude.

-Bring on some hockey.

I'm just sayin'...

I do not promote fighting. I don’t encourage it, instigate it, support it, or persuade people to try it. I do however, find it hard to turn away from it.

Have you ever been to HockeyFights.com? NO? Ok, stop what you’re doin’, cuz I’m about to ruin, the image and the style that you’re used to….(Humpty)

Sorry for that, but seriously stop reading right here and go check out HockeyFights.com.

Did you really go? Or are you cheating and just reading on? Well, if you went, then you’ll understand what I’m saying here…I don’t like to watch people get pummeled, in fact, it actually makes my bones hurt to watch some of these fights. At a hockey game “live” the scene is crazy….Imagine it from both perspectives:

PLAYER: On skates, in front of 17,000 screaming fans, blood pressure 245/195, guy across from you is bigger, and for some reason he’s smiling….

JOE FAN: His first ever National Hockey League Fight, contemplating doing 2 different things; Cheering and pumping his arms like a rock em’ sock em’ robot and spilling beer on the family in front of him….OR…crossing his arms and taking note of every single aspect of the encounter, studying, perched from his seat in section 322.

Mark Rycroft turned me on to this site because he was telling me about a fight he had on March 17^th, 2007 against Daniel Carcillo of the Phoenix Coyotes. Mark was playing for the Avalanche at the time and was a pretty scrappy 3^rd or 4^th line guy. Carcillo was a rookie, but stories had surfaced around the league that he could hold his own when the gloves got dropped. Mark knew this. In fact, let me paraphrase what he told me before I watched this fight: “Keefer….I knew the second I got tangled up with this dude, that I was in for a ride…He’s a tough little (PG-13) and I knew I had to throw as many punches as I could to stay alive.”

Watch the fight for yourself. Mark doesn’t win the fight, but he doesn’t back down either. I was impressed with the way he handled himself, in fact, I have more respect for him now, for NOT backing away.

My point is this, don’t fight. Don’t instigate fighting. Don’t be that guy that no-one likes to hang out with because they’re all scared you’ll lose your mind, snap, and go nuts on random people just to show how tough you are. Be a sane, intelligent individual and figure things out like an adult. With that being said, if you are just slightly interested and you just want to take a little peak at some pretty awesome fights, go to HockeyFights.com. I’m just sayin’…

 

A Ride With Bernie

I dropped my car off at the dealership and was told it would take all day to fix, but no need to rent a car...."Bernie would be happy to take you wherever you have to go...he drives the shuttle".

Think about it for a second, how many different souls drift in and out of our lives usually without any recognition. We shake hands or say hello or give a nod and that's it....regardless of how long your encounter was...20 minutes later you'd be hard pressed to pick them out of a police line-up. After all, you are busy, you don't have time for meaningless conversation with a total stranger, you've got stress, things on your mind, things to do, so no time for any nonsense "gibberish" with Bernie the shuttle driver.

Before I go on...let me share a quote I read tonight laying here in my bed...take from it whatever you want, but I hope it makes you stop and think next time before you blow off a guy like Bernie...a man and a father, a husband, and a grandfather who YOU have already pre-judged.

"Death visits everyone regardless of health history, age, gender, ethnicity, or income. Death does not discriminate, nor will it wait for what you consider the right time, it has no if-only’s. Its visits are unconditional and final."

I hopped in the front seat with a big smile on my face and shook his hand. We introduced ourselves and off we went. He was probably in his late 60's, pretty good health, seemed pretty low key. He mentioned that his wife thought he needed to get a job, or a hobby after retiring from C-Dot ten years ago. He said he liked driving people around. I told him he was a good man for doing it. We shared stories like two old boys out on a porch somewhere and then out of the blue he says to me, "you're a lot thinner in real person than you are on TV." He continued, "I saw you sky diving last week, rarely miss an episode....how's Chris Stewart by the way? I sure hope "Andy” can regain his form from last year..."

I cracked up. This guy was the real deal. What a cool dude I had just run into. Two seconds before I got in that van, I had a choice: be quiet, mind my own business, and take my free ride......or engage with Bernie and roll the dice on random conversation.

Bernie turned out to be a saint. One of the coolest cats I've met in a while. He told me he wants to be on the list with the zamboni crew. He'd love a shot at driving the zamboni during hockey games. I told him I'd do my best to check around. I gave him my card, offered him some tickets down the road and we said goodbye.

When I drove off the lot, I thought about what it would be like to have never met Bernie. I could have just sat in the backseat and sent random texts to my fellow fantasy hockey buddies, or played Angry Birds, maybe check Facebook, but I didn't and it paid off.

You never know, I could have been killed on the way home and the conversation I had with Bernie would have been my last.....unconditional and final.

What would Bernie say about me?

It happens every day. In every city, every office, classroom, coffee shop, we are all too busy to remember: life is short, we got one crack at this thing, let's gamble together, and make conversation, compliment each other, lend a buck to a stranger, say thanks to the guy next door.

Life is better only if we make it better.

I'm gonna really try this year....really try.....To put down the iPod, iPad, stop texting and tweeting so much, slow down and actually talk to people. The irony is, I had to tell you in a blog.

Happy new year!
Sent from my iPad (LOL)