The Spike Series: Meet my Sister, Ceres

Two Peas in a  Momentary Pod

Hi, people, Spike here! First things first, I want to use my Constitutional right to air my grievances. My woman has not posted anything in many days, which means telling you all the story of my road trip back in JULY has not happened yet. Then she goes and compounds that by making her first post of 2015 about my new sister, Ceres. I don't know why I am shocked though, Ceres is taking a lot of my stuff, so why should my blog series be any different. Oh well, The Man says I have been a champ about everything else so I will try to be good about this too... Everyone I want you to meet Ceres.

Proof she gets fed

My people adopted Ceres from the Colorado Pug Rescue, which is the same organization that brought Laurie and me together. The Man and my Laurie were not really actively looking for another dog, but after reading about her story on Facebook she touched their hearts. Ceres, aka Siren or Baby Girl, is believed to have been part of a puppy mill and was either hit by a car or thrown from a car. Either way no one came to get her from the shelter where she was taken, and so the Pug Rescue helped her get better, just like they did for me! Ceres has had surgery on her hips, some teeth were pulled, and she has been spayed. Everyone keeps saying she is extremely well-adjusted for everything that has happened, and are also amazed at the fact that she does not need any on-going medication. She one ups me there as I still require twice-daily eye cream.

She came to us with the name Siren (because she does this occasional whine/howl thing that kind of sounds like a siren), but her foster parents had taken to calling her baby girl. Either way she did not recognize her name, so The Man proposed changing it to Ceres. Laurie wanted to keep it as Siren, so they took it to Facebook; well as you can already tell, she lost. 

Why Ceres? 

A picture of Ceres taken by the Dawnspacecraft 12 February 2015. 

When The Man first proposed the name, Laurie thought he was saying Siri (the Apple Woman) because she is not a science NERD like him. Then he explained that Ceres (minor-planet designation 1 Ceres) /ˈsɪəriːz/is a dwarf planet located in the asteroid belt, which lies between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. Considering how tiny she is (about 14 pounds soaking wet), the name seemed to fit. Plus, I reiterate, Laurie lost.

So how are things going in our house? Honestly, they are going well. We had a couple minor setbacks - it was really cold the other day AND the WHITE STUFF came back so she and I both struggled with it. Then there was the matter of "during the day" sleeping arrangements. My people bought Ceres an enclosure, a soft kennel type thing, that she Houdini-ed out of in about three seconds; so they tried me in it. I was not loving that option, which means we are experimenting with us each having our own bed in the powder room. Fingers crossed, but that seems to be going okay - although Ceres and I seem to entertain ourselves with musical beds because she STEALS MY BED! Still, I move out of her way, share my toys as needed, and even share snuggles with my Laurie, which is kind of a really big deal...

Although the snuggles and the day-time bed sharing does bring up an even larger concern - sleeping arrangements in the big bed at night. Laurie has this theory that I grow bigger in the bed, kind of like those magic growing capsules that turn into a shape in water. So you can imagine that two pugs and two people has brought about conversations of getting a king size bed. Until that happens, I have taken to throwing myself against Laurie to the point that she almost falls out of the bed because Ceres has taken the prime real estate (in between my, I mean our people). Still the picture below, taken this morning, would indicate we may be figuring things out. More to come from the soon to be called, "Spike and Ceres Series," but I still get one more post to myself when Laurie finally lets my tell the story of my really long road trip!

 

Football Friday from On Her Game - To the Bears' GM, Phil Emery: Here’s a Dictionary

https://flic.kr/p/2KXNV

This post for Football Friday for On Her Game is a reflection of how worked up I was following yet another painful Bears game.   

As I sit here stewing over another atrocious Bears game, I find myself wondering why I continue to hold on to my allegiances. I live in my own house in Denver, with the mortgage to prove it, am married to a man with terrible allegiances (Colts and the Manning led Broncos), yet I still root for my Bears with a passion. By personal standards, I came late to the football party (around age eight), and I would always cheer for whomever my Dad was rooting for during a particular game. When we move to the Chicago-land area, he became a Bears fan, and so did I. Nearly 25 years later, I am still at it.

I recently came across a fantastic joke in the latest edition of Reader’s Digest:

 “Three fans were bemoaning the sorry state of their football team.

‘I blame the general manager,’ said the first fan.
‘If he signed better players, we’d be a great team.’

‘I blame the players,’ said the second fan. ‘If they made more of an effort,
we’d score more points.’

‘I blame my parents,’ said the third. ‘If I’d been born in Seattle,
I’d be supporting a decent team.’”

Now, to be clear, I don’t blame my Dad for teaching me to root for the Bears. He also taught me to be a White Sox fan rather than the Cubs, and I know I have a better life because of it. Plus I am an adult, who is now informed enough to make her own decisions on who I want to cheer for during a given game. That will not stop me, however, from blaming both the GM Phil Emery and the Bears players for their continual missteps on the field.

Let’s start with Phil Emery. This is the GM who followed Jerry Angelo, a man who drove Bears fan, namely me absolutely bonkers with mistake after mistake, most notably in the draft. Shall I regale you with tales of running back or quarterback woes? For the sake of my own sanity, I am going to skip the list. Let’s suffice it to say, a majority of them can no longer be found on any roster in the league. So in steps Emery, who appeared to make an immediate positive impact, until he did not; unless you want to count a negative impact? I believe in my heart Emery and I parted ways philosophically when he refused to resign Brian Urlacher. The man who led the defense that resurrected the “Monsters of the Midway,” and took the Bears to the Super Bowl; a championship they would have won if the offense had even a mediocre quarterback. No, Sexy Rexy (Rex Grossman) does not even meet the bar of mediocrity in my mind.

I got off the topic at hand, which is Emery. Instead of signing Urlacher, he decided to spend a majority of the Bears available salary cap monies on the offensive side of the ball. I am not disagreeing with the thought, with the exception that the pendulum swung wildly to the other side. There is no balance! At this point, the personnel on the offensive side of the ball have the potential to be one of the best in the league. Note that POTENTIAL is the operative word in that statement; whereas the defense, marred by injuries and suspect talent, is without a leader or an identity. No, Lance Briggs does not count as a leader, and I will spare myself the personal anguish of thinking about safety Chris Conte. Most every game I scream at the TV, put me in coach, I can play better than him! Yes, at 5’2”, 1—, female, and slow, I still contend I can be a better pro-safety than Chris Conte.

Back to my man Urlacher, a consensus future Hall of Fame linebacker, whom I still miss terribly, who had this to say on Jay Cutler, “Financially, he is one of the elite guys in the NFL ... he just hasn't produced like an elite quarterback. You look at the [Tom] Bradys, the [Peyton] Mannings, the [Aaron] Rodgers, the [Drew] Brees, those guys win every year, even with no one around them. Rodgers has no offensive line. He wins. Brady has no receivers. He wins.”

Fear not my fellow Bears fan; Phil is here to reassure us that Jay Cutler is an ELITE quarterback in salary and talent, “Emery: "Jay Cutler is a winning quarterback in this league and no matter how you analyze the history of quarterbacks in the NFL, if you have a winning record you are an elite player at that position.”

This would be the point in the article where I would call, bull sh*t.

I want to see the Bears’ front office, led right now by Phil Emery to consider how they are delegating their resources. There needs to be an acknowledgement that signing Cutler to a lucrative contract came at the expense of the defensive side of the ball. And until the Bears start consistently winning, or at least playing up to the offensive potential, I am going to send Emery a dictionary so that he can consult it for the definition of the word ‘elite.’ 

For those of you keeping track at home, Dictionary.com defines it this way:

noun
1. (often used with a plural verb) the choice or best of anything considered collectively, as of a group or class of persons.

2. (used with a plural verb) persons of the highest class: Only the elite were there.

adjective

1. representing the most choice or select; best: an elite group of authors.

The recent play of Jay Cutler does not warrant the support from his General Manager, but there is little doubt that his paycheck certainly does.

I Wear his Shirts; I Hear her Voice

Throughout my undergraduate education at Indiana University (HOOSIERS!), I took a few rock 'n' roll history courses. During the first day of one of those classes the professor asked us to raise our hands in order to identify what part of the music we each listened to, as we tend to fall in to one of two groups: the beat/instrumental or the lyrics. I am in the latter category, which is part of why I enjoy some country music. I take flack for it, but I do enjoy songs that tell stories or have something to say. For the record, talk of tractors, drinking on planes, or alcohol in general do not qualify. 

Anyway, to my point of "outing myself as something of a country music fan," I really like a song by Lee Brice called, "I Drive Your Truck." It is about a guy whose brother was killed in combat. Rather than going to visit his brother's grave, he feels close to him by driving his truck. 

Ever since I lost my Grandpop earlier this year, I have found myself thinking a lot about the process of grieving. Not just the loss of my paternal grandfather, but also my maternal grandmother as these are two losses that have had a profound impact on my life. Just like the guy in the song, I do not feel close to either of them at their graves, but rather in other ways.

My maternal grandmother (my Mom-Mom) passed away when I was in high school. When I think of her I think of buttons, the beach, Disney World, a really comfortable chair with an ottoman, and this one very distinct conversation. I have this larger than life chair and ottoman that I refuse to part with even though it does not really fit in my house anymore, I think in large part because it reminds me of sitting in her apartment in Baltimore in that chair with my feet propped up. There was also that conversation. I was just starting to reach the age where it was fun and cool to really chat with your grandparents, and I was telling her about this English teacher that I had in high school who was really giving me fits (Highland alums - think Junior Year with Mrs. Berg). This teacher really made me feel less than; and my Mom-Mom's response, "you don't have to take that from her!" It was the sassiest thing I had ever heard Dorothy Poist say, and it has stuck with me! 

I have this bulldozer in my life, a person who drives me absolutely crazy, and I have recently realized that I can apply what Mom-Mom said to me then, "I don't have to take that from her!" And you know what, I am not going to anymore. 

Grandpop, my paternal grandfather, was the only grandfather I grew up with as my Pop-Pop (maternal grandfather) passed away when I was around 4 1/2. His loss has been very difficult for our family, but we keep him close in many ways including wearing his flannel shirts. He had a quality collection of flannel shirts, and everyone went home with one. I also have a scratchy wool sweater that I wear at times when I really miss him. Yes, it's real love if you are willing to wear an itchy wool sweater that gives off a Mr. Rogers vibe. 

I am still caught off guard at times by my feelings of grief. I will be minding my own business, and a thought will float in to my mind, and I will just be overcome with emotion. I have been thinking about him a lot during the baseball playoffs. He would have been especially impressed by the play of many of the outfielders as he always appreciated a good throw to the plate. I also taught Danny to keep score at a game, just like Grandpop taught me. 

I have also been thinking a lot about my going to my grandparents' house in November for Thanksgiving. He won't be there to greet me with a "HiYa!" and a kiss on the cheek. My Grandmom will be there, however, and I cannot wait to give her a big hug. She is so tiny, I am always afraid I will break her, but I know she understands my need to hold her tight.

Please hold on tight to those you love, we only have a finite amount of time together, and it's never enough. Until I am reconnected with my Mom-Mom and Pop-Pop, along with my Grandpop, I am going to continue to wear his shirts, and hear her voice. 

Football Friday from On Her Game - The Strange Case of Dr. Jay and Mr. Cutler

https://flic.kr/p/5h9gAo

This post for Football Friday for On Her Game is my attempt to recap the craziness that ensued on Sunday night. The jury is still out on my fantasy team, but just like the Bears I am going to try to improve each week, starting by playing the right players as they don't do me any good if I leave them on my virtual bench!  

For this Bears’ fan there was a lot more trepidation than anticipation leading up to last night’s match-up against the 49ers. I always seem to forget how difficult it is to predict game outcomes in general, but especially in the first few weeks of any NFL season as there is very limited basis for fan speculation/media hype. Rather, you are looking at one week of regular season highlights/game tape combined with scrutiny of the moves made in the off-season with some wishful thinking thrown in for good measure.

I let all that get the best of me thinking about this game. I had no idea what to expect from the Bears who did not have a particularly strong showing in an overtime loss to the Bills. Yes, THE BILLS! Then the Bears had to come off that loss and travel to San Francisco to face a team that many predict (hype!) will make a strong playoff push, in their stadium opener, in Primetime, with the strong possibility that Marshall and Jeffrey were not going to play. All a realistic Bears’ fan could hope for was not to get blown out in front of a National TV audience. See there is that hype again. Unfortunately in the first half it appeared that the Bears were going to do their level best to live up to those bleak expectations. The defense appeared to be playing in a state of paranoia or in the Bears case a fear of their often suspect secondary, specifically the safety help coming over the top (or not as the case may be). They were trying so hard to rush Kaepernick that they were being eaten alive by the screen pass. Still they managed to keep the offense in the game despite a cheerless offensive performance in the first half, the evil “Dr. Jay,” if you will. That is until something clicked or maybe it was someone (Quinton Dial) pounding on Cutler’s sternum right at the end of the first half. Jay reported post-game that it felt like his stomach met his back. Again, say what you want about Cutler, but don’t tell me he isn’t tough. Whatever it was, Cutler and the rest of the Bears were of a different caliber in the second half. Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffrey also each turned in a gutsy performance as they were clearly playing hard despite their injury limitations. Of course Marshall stole the spotlight with three touchdowns, including a one-handed grab that is sure to make SportsCenter Top 10 Plays of the Week.

Before going out with a shoulder injury, free safety Chris Conte made a superman like interception on Kaepernick, which was one of four turnovers caused by the defense along with four sacks, and only allowing 129 yards rushing. These stats are made that much more exciting given that two of those turnovers were from rookie Kyle Fuller who should see more playing time with the unfortunate loss of Peanut Tillman for the season (triceps).

Now for my own version of hype: what if the Bears could play like this for a whole game? What if the right Jay, the “Mr. Cutler persona,” the tough, composed guy who does not try to win the game with one (often errant) throw, were to show himself with true consistency? He has an incredible fourth quarter rating, but it really would be okay if he spread that out across the whole game.

Right now the Bears are tied with all three of the other teams in the NFC North with a record of 1-1. It is too early to make speculations, but that is not going to stop me. What if the Bills are better than people anticipated? If that’s the case, maybe the Bears are too. They have a tough schedule ahead, but last night was certainly a second half for the offense to build upon and about three quarters for a defensive that demonstrated this is not the miserable Bears D of 2013.

Also, thank you Bears for doing right by my Mom and winning on her birthday. She deserved it – she’s the best.

Thoughts on STUFF OR Going from a 'Forest'er to a Leaf

This post is quite overdue as Danny and I purchased the Leaf back at the end of March, but we were just reunited with it last week after about six weeks (I was rear-ended) - so I am using that as my catalyst to write down my thoughts on the subject of "stuff" in general and perhaps our cars in particular.

In my 32 years plus, I have come to understand that I have a weird relationship with things in general, but that eccentricity particularly manifests itself when it comes to clothing, cars, and watch out if I have deemed something to be at all sentimental. 

I had a short-lived fascination with the show, Tiny House Nation, which is capitalizing on the small house movement that appears to be sweeping across the country. I say short-lived because the show quickly began to feel redundant in that there are not very many different ways to show a family moving from a large house to a tiny house (typically under 400 square feet), and the inevitable purging of stuff that is required to make such a lifestyle shift. Plus, I found that I was beating up on myself because I do not think I could ever do it, and quite frankly I do not need a television show to be the reason I feel down on myself. I can do that all on my own, thank you; plus it goes against my pursuit for 100 Days of Happiness. 

If you know me at all, or have read my blog, I think you know that once my brain starts down a path, God only knows where this thought process would land - as Danny has said, my mind is like a wide receiver running a route: zig zag, crossing pattern, over the middle, etc. So once I started thinking about moving in to a tiny house, and what all that would entail, I started to think about my feelings toward things overall. First this led me to my wardrobe - I have a fear of clothing. There I said it. Or perhaps it is that I have a fear of shopping for clothing. On more than one occasion I have come close to hyperventilating when I walk in to a mall or any store that sells clothing. I see all these fun pieces, but have no idea how in the world to make an ensemble. Then if I get something put together, I have trouble paying for it. Not that I don't make money, but rather I severely struggle with spending the money for this purpose. I do not know what an appropriate budget is for clothing in relation to my household income level. And then if I do pull the trigger, I invariably end up with buyer's remorse feeling as though I was consumptive, spending too much on myself, etc. Plus I just want to look cute and put together - because I figure that perhaps it will help me fake it until I can find the requirements make it. *Big Sigh*

Now, imagine what it is like to go car shopping with me! Let me repeat: I have a weird relationship with cars. Perhaps it is because I have had a string of strange things happen to my cars. Stick with me here: My first car (Chevy S-10 Pick-up Truck) was totaled while parked in front of my parents' house (as I slept through the whole thing). Its replacement was a Saturn S2 that had a tree fall on it, also while it was parked in front of my parents' house; somehow the car was fine. Shortly thereafter, however, the air conditioning compressor went out as I was driving to Michigan, which stranded me in Fort Wayne, Indiana. I paid to fix it only to drive it into a decorative rock (in Michigan, because apparently their rocks are pretty heavy), which did many dollars worth of damage. About a year after I got the car back I traded it in for my beloved Scion XA because I never did feel safe in the Saturn after getting stranded because of the air conditioning compressor. I provide this caveat because I understand that the rock incident was totally my fault, the car did nothing wrong. Anyway, after five years with my Scion, the car that brought me to Colorado, and one year before it was paid off, it drowned. No really, the car was flooded in front of my office. The fact that I was particularly traumatized after the flooding, combined with the fact that I wanted to feel safer driving in Colorado winters led me to purchase my first ever SUV and first brand new car - a Subaru Forester. I really liked the Forester, but I always seemed to suffer from buyer's remorse especially since the whole process of purchasing the car was particularly disastrous. Has anyone ever had a really good experience buying a car?

Are you still with me? If so, thank you. Last year we also had to replace Danny's car at which time we purchased a Toyota Prius. Besides the fact I called my Dad on the verge of a meltdown at the mere thought of buying  a house AND a car in the same month, I have done just fine with that purchase. In fact, I have developed an attachment to the Prius akin to my Scion. Anyway, from time to time I would ask Danny whether we should consider trading in the Forester as it never felt like the right car for us, except on really crummy driving days, in which case I loved that thing! So I contacted a friend to get an appraisal on the value of the Forester. Based on the estimated value, it was finally the time to consider something else. About three days later, Danny and I end up at the Nissan dealership near our house as I come from a family of Sentra owners. So I wanted to consider a Sentra. Danny wanted to test drive the fully electric Nissan Leaf. Both of us loved it, much to our surprise. When the numbers came out to be pretty much equal, it felt like a real opportunity to utilize electric technology. Not to mention I thought it was funny to go from a 'Forest'er to a Leaf - get it? Yes, I am a dork. 

I think you can officially call us 21st Century hippies - with an electric car and a hybrid. Just don't laugh too hard until you see our monthly gas bills...

So what in the world am I talking about? I think at times I feel pressure to have less things, to live a more simplified life. While this is a good goal, and one I am certainly trying to embrace: it needs to be done in a more personal way. There are just some things that I am not ready to get rid of or purchase right now. Still, I don't think that means I will not feel differently later. Just like many other things,  this is an ongoing process. I am absolutely embracing the idea of spending money on experiences rather than things, especially when I travel. Yet, sometimes I like to have a memento to invoke the memories from that experience. They way I see it, this has to be all about a balance, and perhaps that is why I really resonated with an article from Real Simple, "What I Learned from Purging Most of my Stuff (and Why I Wish I Hadn't)." Sometimes, things do matter. 

Now if someone can just teach me how to build a wardrobe, I would be eternally grateful.

Why I DO Support the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge

Post by Suzanne Killmer.

I am pretty sure that this morning I literally woke up standing on a soap box. While I have heard that sleep is supposed to be a restorative time for rest and rejuvenation, my brain does not always seem to get that memo. Further proof that being married to me can be an exhausting task, just ask Righteous Flower (Danny's Mayan Name) who was bombarded by a sampling of my frustration around critics of the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge right before he walked out the door for work around 6:45 a.m. A friend recently shared that he would not be participating in nor supporting the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge even though he had been challenged by numerous people. Of course this is his prerogative, but then the debate went further with this article entitled,"This is Why Critics are Slamming the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge" from E! - you know the Network that can bring the Kardashians in to your living room, which is a whole other phenomenon that I still do not understand. I digress. Of course the source notwithstanding, I would like to share my own perspective on the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge.

I always strive to be honest, and in that spirit I will make it clear that I have not dumped ice cold water on my head. Rather, I made a donation to the ALS Association, Rocky Mountain Chapter in my Mom's honor since she helped care for a woman with ALS; so she knows first hand what an awful disease this is, and why a cure is so desperately needed. I would like to say that water conservation was at the heart of my decision, as eluded to in the critical article, but to be honest I felt as though my money was more valuable than any video I could create as I am not overly animated or particularly dynamic (unless I am yelling at the TV, apparently).

Now to the crux of the argument that I found myself making this morning before I was even fully awake. The outspoken critics of the challenge appear to be of the opinion that it is not raising awareness of what ALS actually is or how it impacts people. I would vehemently, yet respectfully disagree, as raising funds is a form of awareness. To put it in perspective, "in the last 22 days the National Chapter of the ALS Association has raised 22.9 million. Last year for the ENTIRE YEAR they raised 23.5 million." That statistic came out three days ago, at that rate the number could be over 25 million dollars. I struggle to comprehend how money of this staggering amount could be raised if people did not have at least a vague understanding of what their money was going to do. People do not give their money to just anything - and I say that with YEARS of nonprofit fundraising under my belt.

The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, combined with other marketing campaigns such as the video released by Major League Baseball on the 75th Anniversary of Lou Gehrig's "Luckiest Man Farewell Speech", have in fact contributed to a heightened sense of awareness that this disease exists and needs to be stopped! The video from MLB featured all 30 first basemen (and a cameo by Yankee Derek Jeter) reciting the now-iconic oration. Lou Gehrig passed away before his before his 38th birthday from this awful disease that now bears his name. Please take a moment to watch the video.

As I said, I have YEARS of nonprofit fundraising in my experience, both in professional and volunteer capacities. I currently work for a Network of Samaritan Centers that on average have to raise 30% of their operating budget every single year. For many this is a matter of keeping the doors open! This money is required to treat people with or without the ability to pay, meaning they also have to subsidize those people with insurance along with self-pay clients. Do you think that any non-profit leader would appreciate criticism around a campaign that is raising millions of dollars with out any overhead (staff time, operating costs, etc.)?! I have spoken to numerous nonprofit professionals who are at their wits end trying to think of new/different/fun ways to raise money in an effort to continue to provide much needed, quality services to people in need of care. Can you imagine carrying that burden on a daily basis? I can because I have experienced it. Do you think the critics of this campaign have?

Perhaps before you criticize efforts to bring about awareness and raise funds to combat or support something, anything; please think about the people involved in the process. Each day on my Facebook news-feed and other media outlets, amidst videos of people dumping ice water on their head, I see people talking about and donating to help end the suffering related to ALS! I also see people sharing that they have been diagnosed with this terrible disease. This is also a form of awareness because once you know someone who has been impacted, this abstract becomes very personal and very real! I only wish we could figure out a way to draw this much attention (both awareness and money) to other awful plights in this world: hunger/poverty, lack of access to clean drinking water, mental health, MS, diabetes, cancer. Whatever your cause is - please do your part to help support it, but also be careful about criticizing others efforts. Negativity does not help further any cause.

*Steps Down from Soap Box*

 

Football Friday from On Her Game - Okay Jay, the Bears are YOURS

https://flic.kr/p/dVfJcB

This post for Football Friday for On Her Game is my first of this new season. I watched the first quarter of the first pre-season game. The Bears had flashes of excitement while I am fairly certain that the Eagles received a stern talking to from their coach given all their penalties. Here's hoping the Bears can bring some excitement to the upcoming season, and that I can draft a decent fantasy team!

While my Bears fandom has not wavered since my family arrived in the Chicago-land area in the early 90s, despite the agony that was Super Bowl XLI, along with the fact that I am an official Colorado Transplant with a Denver phone number and a mortgage. Yet, my feelings toward Jay Cutler have not been necessarily favorable as documented in former writings (here, here, here, etc.). What I might have omitted is the excitement I felt when Cutler was first traded to the Bears as it felt like the possibility that the quarterback ridiculousness that had plagued the Bears over many seasons was finally coming to an end. I may have also failed to mention that perhaps I wandered around my house (with that pesky mortgage) for many days muttering, $126.7 million with $54 million in virtual guarantees, which was the agreement as reported by ESPN.

In spite of my often contentious, albeit one-sided, relationship; since I am rationale enough to understand that Cutler does not know who I am, the Bears leadership has decided that Jay is their quarterback of the future. A decision that I can only hope proves to be a good one, not just the realization of, “who else was it going to be?” A number of quarterback contracts have been called in to question lately as the league appears to be coming to the conclusion that sometimes teams have to pay up big money to quarterbacks who are perhaps ‘good enough,’ and that the notion that there are more than 32 athletes who could be deemed ‘exceptional’ is impractical. This may explain why guys like Matthew Stafford, Tony Romo, Joe Flacco, and Andy Dalton are able to take what could be considered borderline mediocrity to the bank. Although I must say that Matthew Stafford served my fantasy team of 2012 well enough, for whatever that is worth.

Anyway, back to Jay. While one can question some of his personal attributes – his apparent, sometimes reckless, arrogance or his smug facial expressions; one cannot question the toughness that has been required to handle the turmoil he has had to endure in Chicago, nor his arm strength. At times the risk is not necessarily worth the reward, but there are enough of those other times when he lofts a ball up there for one of his “Towers of Offense” to go up and get; and when they come down with the ball, this Bears fan erupts like no other. No really, my dog gives me funny looks and my husband threatens to put me on YouTube.

Still, Cutler has been playing with a target on his back since he came to the Windy City. I love Chicago, I miss it terribly, but it is not the easiest sports town in the world. I would be considered one of the milder critics… The expectations that were placed on him, especially given the lack of weapons or protection that was provided for him, combined with the fact that he was brought in by an organization that had long valued the defensive side of the ball amounted to sheer lunacy. Plus Cutler appears to be one of the only people in the world who does not care what people think of him. I have heard those people exist, but have rarely seen it demonstrated so vehemently; and to be honest, on some level I wish I knew how to do that at times.

Much of these challenges have changed however, the Bears sent four offensive representatives to the Pro Bowl including an offensive lineman, have hired an offensive minded coach, and given Cutler one of the most formidable receiving corps in the league. AND HE GOT PAID! So, now Jay, I am going to try to lead a positive charge, from my little corner of the internet, toward giving you some much needed support and good press. This is your team with the ultimate goal, hopefully sooner rather than later, for you to lead toward winning a Super Bowl. While participating is exciting, I am not sure my marriage may not be able to withstand another loss at the hands of a Manning-led team.