Pics of the Week - 05.28.12

Jill sitting at the beach on Fiesta Island waiting for the fireworks.  Across the water is Sea World San Diego.

The Tower at Sea World.  It is lit up to look like the American Flag.

The view of Ocean Beach from Fiesta Island.

Jill and Sammie at the end of the rock pier at Dog Beach.  Onlookers were amazed that she was able to traverse the rocks without fear.  

Jeff and Sammie at the end of the rock pier at Dog Beach.  The Pacific Ocean is in the background.

Sammie takes flight!  She is at Dog Beach, learning how to catch a frisbee in her mouth.  This is her first successful catch!  Her friends look on in amazement.

Sammie is playing with her friends at Dog Beach.  This is her second successful attempt at catching a frisbee in her mouth.  

How to Run a Live Fantasy Football Draft

1.  Auction Style - This is 100% better than your traditional snake draft.  Most people stay with the snake out of laziness or because they don't know any better.  Snake drafts are much more prevalent in Fantasy Football discussions and existing leagues, so most people stay with what is familiar.  Auction style keeps everyone in your league engaged throughout the process, whereas in a snake draft there is up to a 45 minute lag time between picks where everyone is basically falling asleep.  Plus - any yay-hoo can do a snake draft.  An auction draft takes real skill.

2.  Have plenty of food and drinks.  Make a real party of it.  Choose something easy like pizza, or burgers/hot dogs/brats, etc.

3.  Have a stats folder.  This gives everyone the same information and helps level the playing field so that you don't have the annoying person that keeps asking random questions about who the starter is at "such and such" position.  We run last year's stats, last year's points per week according to our rules, depth charts, and schedules to name a few things.

4.  Have a big board - Use this to keep track of who is drafted and who is still available.  We used to use the "top 300" list, but the big board summarizes all of the player movement much better.

5.  Make sure everyone pays up at the party.  None of this IOU crap.  No cash - no entry.  That way, when someone wins the league they get paid immediately.  After all, if you're providing food and drinks, the least each person can do is to bring the league entrance fee.

H.A.G.S. and all that other stuff no one ever means...part 2

I wrote a blog a couple of years ago about all of the things people wrote in my junior/senior high yearbook and for whatever reason it was by far the most popular blog entry I've ever written.  Not sure why, but back by popular demand, here is the 2nd edition.
If you haven't read the first edition, I'll link you to it here:
http://jleardini.blogspot.com/2010/09/hags-and-all-that-other-stuff-no-one.html
Again, look for my present day commentary in red.

Jeffrey Leardini "wuz" here "87"
Yeah, that's right.  Apparently, I was so pathetic that I decided to sign my own yearbook.  One word - PLAYA


Good Luck  See you in technology next year.
As this was written by one of my teachers, I should have taken this as a sign that things might not be going so well in class.


On the "Faculty" page, I wrote beneath it "Teachers"
Apparently, I was concerned that I might not figure out what that meant...

Jeff,
Good luck next year and summ
Love,
Stephanie
Is this like one of those dreaded word problems where they give you all of these clues...."Annnnnnd....SUM!  QUICKLY YOU FOOL!  SUM!!!!!!!"


Jeff,
So What's up?  Have fun this summer  get a girlfriend  see you at LShS
Chow,
Stephanie
I believe Stephanie was majoring in Grammar with a minor in International Studies


Jeff,
hi! I'm glad we met and became friends.  Stay sweet cute and smart!  I don't really know what to say so I'll let ya go.  I Love Joe!
Love,
Annette
Alright then I'll talk to you later.  Buh-bye now.  I'll make sure to rip this page out and pass it along to Joe.


Jeff,
What's up.  Not much here.  Later
Well, since you asked, I went for a run this evening.  There was a slight dew on the lawn....


Jeff,
Maybe you'll pass and be with me next year in 9th grade.  And you might be half the size as me by then.
P.S. Don't change your attitude.
Aaron
I should have realized I was behind the curve a little when my mom was still shopping at Osh Kosh well into my teenage years.


Jeff,
Hows it brewin?  Have a good summer and I'll see you in 9th.
Joe
Well, as Aaron could tell you, my growth was somewhat stunted, perhaps by that Mochachino I enjoyed each morning....

Pics of the Week - 05.21.12

Jill's new party hat

Hanging out at the Zoo with the Elephants. 

Jill - Monkeying around at the San Diego Zoo.

Sammie with her new frisbee.  Somehow I don't think this is going to make it very long.  Good thing it was only a buck.

These 2 pictures are taken of Sammie at the Dog Park inside Balboa Park.  This is the biggest Dog Park I've ever seen.  You can see based on the pictures that the park goes on forever.  In the bottom picture, Sammie is the black speck in the middle.  The park ends where the bushes are in the very back of the bottom picture and behind all those trees in the top picture.  It goes on forever!

Sammie and I relaxing on the couch.

Jill at the Zoo on the Cable Car that traverses the park.  The view is spectacular from up here.  You can see all the way into downtown from up here.

This is my attempt to capture the eclipse from our apartment.  As you can see, that was an Epic Fail!

How to survive a plane crash

This probably depends on what type of crash you're in.  I'm not going to be able to help in a "total devastation" scenario, but here are some tips that might help you out in the event that the unthinkable happens.

1.  Sit in an aisle seat
I know that you love to look out the window, and if you should happen to drift off, the wall of the plane is right there to lean against.  Remember the last time you sat in a window seat?  Did you get a good look at the Vegetable Lasagna sitting next to you?  How about the tool sitting next to him.  Think about it.  You have to make it past these 2 geniuses in order to have any chance off that plane.  I know that you're thinking if the plane is in danger, they will move fast.  Really?  Have you ever seen one of those trampling scenes in a Walmart on the day after Thanksgiving.  Who's to say you won't get caught up in that?  Your best bet is to grab an aisle seat.  Even an aisle seat in the back of the plane is better than a window seat in the front (The one exception being the exit row).  If something happens you can assess the situation and get immediately into the aisle to get off the plane.

2.  Know your surroundings
Too often when people get on a plane, they think that they are in for a leisurely trip.  Look around the next time you're on a plane.  How many of the people around you look like they're camping rather than preparing for an emergency.  Can't tell you the last time I saw anyone pick up one of those cards in the seat back, or actually pay attention when the flight attendants are pointing out the exits.  HUGE MISTAKE!!!  You should absolutely commit to memory where all of the exits are, as well as how many rows are between you and the exit.  The first thing I do when I sit down is count the number of rows between myself and the exit.  If the cabin fills with smoke, you may not be able to see the exit.  In that scenario, the only thing you can do is feel your way to the exit.  By knowing how many rows are between you and the exit, you can anticipate if you can make it to your exit or need to seek another.  Also, on many occasions, there is an exit behind you that may be ignored by other passengers, particularly if you are sitting in the back of the plane.

3.  Have a plan
This is probably the most important.  What would you do if you were in a life threatening situation?  You can only think about so many circumstances.  Who knows what might happen, but you should at least have a basic plan for an emergency.  Remain alert during take off and landing.  These are the most likely times that there will be a problem.  Probably the most important part of the plan is to stay calm, however.  If you are frenetic, you may end up making poor decisions or overlooking important factors.

4.  Protect your head at all costs
Ever notice that when someone dies, this many times, is preceded by a period of unconsciousness.  If you are knocked out, you have no chance of getting off the plane alive unless a good Samaritan helps you.  Protect your head from getting jostled or possibly hitting it against the seat tray in front of you.  Tighten your seat belt so that you are secure in your seat and are not at risk of bouncing around.  Place your head between your legs with your hands over your head and protect at all costs.  Once the impact is over, this may be the only thing that enables you to walk away unharmed.

Pics of the Week

Pics of the Week - 04.23.12

Jill, Blue Mews, Jeff, Rachel (Jeff's Coworker), and Red Ruff at the Phillies/Padres game on Friday, April 20 in the Petco Suite!

This is Sammie with some of her Easter presents from Grandma.  She got a stuffed "Jack" and a rope.  As a footnote, the rope is now in tatters.

Sammie at Dog Beach.  This picture perfectly illustrates how awesome Dog Beach is.  It seems to go on forever and the dogs can just run and play off-leash.  It's terrific.  This was also Sammie's introduction to salt water, which she doesn't quite know what to think about.  She loves to stick her face in the water, but then she'll throw her face in the air and try to spit out all the salt on her tongue.  The other dogs just look at her like, "What's the matter with her?"

This is a bulletin board that I created at work.  Everyone loves it.  Or, at least, that's what they're saying to my face.  It's made up of pictures and "fun facts" about Aquatic Turtles and Koi.  The idea is that people will think of their own fun facts, write them on the post it notes and stick them in the center of the bulletin board.  One of the new additions today reads "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are not aquatic turtles".  Perhaps I should have been more specific about the types of fun facts we were going for.

Jeff and Jill at the Phillies/Padres game on Sunday, April 22.  No, I have not given up my allegiance to the Yankees.  I just wanted to make sure if the rowdies got after Jill that they would go easy on us if we had at least 1 Padre fan in the group.  Truth be told, I was more in jeopardy of abuse and ridicule than she was.  There were tons of Phillies fans at the game.

Pics of the week - 04.30.12

This is one of my favorite pictures.  
Look in the cell phone. That’s me taking this picture of Jill as she is taking one of me. 
We’re at a spiritual garden of some sort that overlooks the beach. 

Amazing views!

This is Jill at the Encinitas Street Fair with her UFC style Dolphins hat on. 

This is a sign someone was selling at the Encinitas Street Fair.  
El Jefe means “The Boss”, which I clearly am not. 

This is a favorite nickname given to me by some of my Spanglish speaking friends.

Pics of the week - 05.07.12

Sammie checking out the Crested Gecko in my office.
Pretty sure she's wondering why it's getting to eat then and she isn't.

The latest addition to the office.  This is my Bearded Dragon.
They are much more social than the Crested Geckos, which are more nocturnal.

I tried to get my Crested Gecko to show some signs of life, so I spread some food on the leaf and to my surprise the feeding frenzy was on.  

Jill and I at the Cinco de Mayo party.  All of the gear I acquired when others discarded various Cinco de Mayo paraphernalia during the party.

Sammie with the Cinco de Mayo hat on.
Clearly she is loving it!

How To Save Celebrity Apprentice

Let's all get real for a second.  Of the people who read this blog, a fair number are going to say they don't watch the Celebrity Apprentice, or didn't realize it was still on tv.  I get that, but it's time we did something about it.
Mr. Trump - I'm talking to you!
This show was one of my favorites, but the past few seasons have been horrible.  All they've amounted to is a weekly yell-fest.  I started watching because I wanted to see smart people doing smart things.  This season, especially, all I've been seeing is 2 hours of editing to show all of the screw ups or preludes to the board room. There is nothing ingenious about this.  After what I saw this weekend, I made the comment that this show has officially jumped the shark.  I want it to be about the smartest person and not the person who screams the loudest or who drops the most F-bombs.

My Plan To Save Celebrity Apprentice

1. Make something fresh out of the show.

     A.  Start the season with 4 teams instead of 2 and have the winning team get immunity while the other 3 battle it out.  Simple logic here, when 2 teams do a great job, #2 shouldn't always lose.  Plus, there are usually plenty of train wrecks that can be eliminated on smaller teams, rather than hiding on larger teams.  The show is 2 hours long, so there is plenty of time for this.  The current format drags on forever with almost nothing that is compelling to watch.

     B.  Have a team of regular joes against a team of celebrities.  The tasks could not be about money, but it would be really interesting to see regular people trying to out-hustle celebrities.  Later on in the season, you could mix the teams to include both together.

     C.  Switch up the teams after each task to eliminate the gang mentality that ultimately takes over the show each season.  It's as predictable as the ball dropping on New Years.  If someone doesn't like another person, they rally up all of their friends to try to gang up and bring down that person in the board room.  Mr. Trump reacts by exclaiming that no one likes that person.  That's because the well has been poisoned, so to speak.  Switch up the teams so that you're playing with a fresh set of partners each week.  This avoids the "Salem Witch Trial" mentality where they pick on someone and eventually gang up on them until Mr. Trump has no choice but to fire them.

     D.  Make a secret camera that Don Jr., Ivanka, Eric, etc. can look in on the teams with, rather than walking into see each team in person.  Right now, it's so predictable.  When the person responsible for being Mr. Trump's eyes and ears on a task come in, people run to them and suck up.  Put a secret camera in their war rooms so that the teams can be observed as they really are performing and not some artificial suck up moment.

2. Invite people who actually want to be on the show.

This isn't entirely fair, because many people on the show do take advantage of the opportunity.  It is disgusting to me the amount of celebrities that have simply given up or quit when they can't take it any longer.  Find people who really want to be in it for the long haul.  If they don't know that they are going to be in a bickering environment, then they haven't been watching reality tv for the past 10 years.  When they are called on the carpet in the board room, they should not want to "fall on the sword" or give up.  What is that all about?  Bring the celebrities that don't have to leave every time you turn around.  I heard that Teresa Giudice goes home after each show to care for her family.  She is there for every minute of every task though.  That is what is should be about.  

3.  Improve the Editing

All we see after the show is edited are preludes to the board room.  Show more of the creative portion of the task, or how it is executed.  Currently, it seems like the flaws are the main parts that are edited in, thus making the board room all the more predictable.  Why not leave some suspense by showing a more well rounded version of the task so that the board room is not so predictable.  I remember when I never knew what was going to come out of people's mouths.  Now, I can often speak for them because of the crappy editing job.  I don't need to see Aubrey crying to Don Jr. or Ivanka or whoever is looking in on their tasks.  Save that mess for the board room.

4.  More Mr. Trump

During the first few seasons, there would be clips of Mr. Trump passing along some advice about a topic that the show seemed to center around.  I found this interesting.  No matter how many celebrities you have on the show, the biggest celebrity is always Mr. Trump.  I loved the rewards that the winning teams received, also.  Many times, the rewards were dinner with the Trumps, or going to do something really exciting.  I would think, even the celebrities would work harder if they received certain rewards.