New Year

I first would like to wish everyone a happy new year. I have not blogged in a while so this post will be somewhat of a catch up.

Last week my good friends Josh and Jess got married. Their wedding was so much fun. One of the best weddings I have been too and part of. I know they will have a long and happy life together.

Last month we lost to dear people.

One was Evelyn Simono. She lived a long and happy life. I remember when I was young we would play cards together on cold winter days. She lived over 100 years. That is impressive.

The other was Kartik. He was one of the best software developers I ever got to work with. He really could solve the tough challenges we face. He was an even better person. I remember how much fun we all had at the brewer game, and I go a friend of mine who works fro the brewers to put a welcome message on the big score board for him. He will be missed.

In happier news, the Packers had a nice season and made the playoffs. I hope they can make a super bowl run but it will be tough.

The Badger football team finished the season strong by winning their bowl game against Miami. The expectations for next year will be high because they are returning lots of good players.

Well that is it for now. I will try to blog more regularly this year. I might even blog some tech stuff as well.

Badgers and Packers

So the college and pro football seasons have been going on now for a few weeks. Here are my observations of the Badgers and Packers.

Badger Observations.

Going into their 5th game of the season they are 4 - 0. Their next game is at the new stadium in Minnesota. The two teams play each other for Paul Bunyan's Axe. The Badgers have won the last five meetings.

First the offense. The Badgers have found consistent play from the QB position. This is the biggest surprise for me. Tolzien has been able to deliver the ball to his tightends and receivers on time and in places where only they will catch the ball. John Clay seems to be coming around and rebounded nicely after the terrible game from two weeks ago. The O-line has been getting better every week but still has a lot of room for improvement.

On defense I think they have more depth at every position except safety than they did a year ago. The d-line is getting healthy and got good pressure against M. State. The linbackers are fast and seem to be making plays. The Badgers are currently rotating four guys at corner. I think eventually the staff will need to stick with the two best.

Special teams is where I think the Badgers have improved the most since last season. Already they have blocked a punt, scored a touchdown, and caused a fumble. There has only been a few break downs on coverage but nothing major. The return game still needs work but kickoff return has been better.

Now for the Packers

I think if Aaron Rodgers stays healthy all season he is one of the toughest guys in the league. As of now the O-Line has not been able to block on pass downs. Rodgers has been hit and hit hard. He has been forced to scramble. This has caused a disruption in timing and making the offense sputter. Still the packers are 2 - 1 and heading for a Monday night match up with the Minnesota Vikings.

On defense the Packers have been turning the ball over a lot. That is good. They are still soft against the run though. they have been able to generate pocket pressure and forced other qb's into bad throws. With B.J. Raji getting healthier he should help the depth at the D-Line.

I still think the Packers can be a 10 -6 team if they can tighten up on the offensive and defensive lines. If I was Ted Thompson I would be sending someone to Sun Prairie to work out Mark Tauscher. If he his knee is healthy he could add leadership and ability to the o-line.

Random Thoughts

My Dad was giving me a hard time about not updating my blog enough so I guess I need to do a better job of postig things.

The Brewers are in trouble. I know there are still a lot of games left, but I don't think they have enough pitching right now to make the playoffs. That said I dont thing the sky is falling in Milwaukee, just that some key injuries have hurt them this year. They will rebouond for the 2010 season.

The Badgers have started practice and this is a team I have no idea how they will do. They have talen at RB, WR and TE. The O Line will be breaking in some new guys but should not be a drop off from last year. The QB spot looks to be weak again and thisis a team that needs to get solid play from this position. The defense should have more depth on the D Line, but the LB's are young, and the secondary is again looking like trouble. They do get Henry back, but he is coming off a knee injury.

The packers should be better than there 6-10 record of last year. The offense will be as good or better than last year, and if the Defense can learn the 3-4 defense they should come up with stops late in the game that they couldnt get last year.

Well thats it for now....

Las Vegas and other Stuff

I love Las Vegas. This town is ever changing and always getting better. I just wish I could win some money.

Anyways, some thoughts while I am here.

It is amazing how the casinos are using technology. From the time you check in to the time you leave you see computers and gadgets helping make your stay better. From being able to check out from your room, to watching the cleaning service use hand held device for keeping inventory and schedules up to date.

Tonight I am going to see Spamalot at the Wynn Casino. I hope the show is good.

Ad for my sports teams, the Badger played three good quarters of football before they ran out of gas and lost to the number one team in the nation. The Packers won and it was another amazing game. Brett Favre threw a couple more touchdowns and finally has a win against all thirty-one teams in the NFL.

I am not sure if I will have time to post again fron here but if I do I will try to get some pictures posted.

Wow

All I can say is wow!!!

I Am Back

So Saturday night a friend of mine pointed out that my blog has not been updated for awhile and that I should post something. Since I don't have set topic to talk about this will probably a hodge podge of information.

Badger football is off to a 4-0 start. Although the Badgers haven't really played well and the Big Ten looks to be week they are still 4-0. Better than Michigan, Penn St. and Notre Dame. The Badger Defense look to be settling down and should be one of the better defenses in the nation. The offense still is inconsistent. Part of the reason is they are starting a new QB.

The Packers are off to a 3-0 start. This is surprising because many had thought they might start 1-3, or 0-4. The packer defense has played really well in all three games. They are pretty dominate. They shutdown a really good rb in week 3, and a good qb in week 1. All three teams they beat were playoff teams a year ago and many figured would be again this year. Oh and did I mention that Brett Favre tied the NFL record for touchdown passes.

The Brewers are 3 and a half games out with 7 to play. They are done, but still have a chance to finish above .500 for the first time since 92. They really did have a good season. Prince fielder could be MVP, and Braun should be the Rookie of the year.

At work I am still working on the same projects, so I really have nothing new there. I have been asked to lead a discussion on lose coupling. I said I would, but really haven't had time to put anything together.