Woman, YOU are my claim to fame!

As 2007 comes to an end, I reflect on my blessings. I have so many! Wonderful children and grandchildren ... good health ... parents and parents-in-law who are all still with us and part of our lives ... a wonderful church to pastor ... gainful employment (a little more gain in 2008, please, Lord) ... a beautiful house and comfortable living conditions ... and many fine friends and colleagues I take too much for granted.

But let me end this year, and start the next, by acknowledging and proclaiming, proudly and gratefully, that the greatest blessing in my life, humanly speaking, is, and has been for many, many years now, my superlative life partner, the most wonderful, sweet, and gracious wife any man could ever have, my one and only, Tanya Beverly Jackson.

I am grateful that in 2007 my mate recaptured my attention, dramatically, excruciatingly, pointedly, and thrillingly. I was mortified to realize I had been taking her, the single most important person in my life, for granted in so many ways. Thinking myself a pretty good husband, I had become a pretty sorry one. That's changed now, thanks to my sweetheart's willingness to give me a millionth chance to really show her how much I appreciate and love her, and how committed I am to trying to be the man she can't live without.

Happy New Year, everyone. Make 2008 the year that you really, really love the ones you say you love!

Thank you, Tuna Pie, for being the mother of our children, my lover, my friend, my wife. You have long been the one I can't live without. Woman, YOU are my claim to fame!

Merry Christmas!

Who had time to blog during Christmas? Sheesh! Tanya and I have had a great holiday. Hope you had a merry one, too.

We enjoyed Christmastime at our church, of course, especially the great holiday concert by the ARC Choir, and riding with our grandsons in the Emmet Christmas parade.

Then, on Christmas Eve we spent the evening in Little Rock and had food and fellowship with Nana and Grandaddy and Aunt Zada and Tim and Tracy and little Sam and Paul and Kathy and Matthew and fiancee Shannon and Micah and Leah and Jonathan and little son Gavin and James and Jennifer and Jacob and friends Don and Diane from the ARC Choir.

Back to our house for Christmas. Yesterday Judea and fiance Frank and Brutus the dog and Charlie the cat and Joshua and Maw and Paw and Jerusalem and Nathan and Wylie and Miles and Chloe the dog all descended on us for a great day and night (everybody spent the night!) of fun and food and fellowship. We missed Adam and Jemimah far away in Germany very much, but they sent gifts and we spoke with them on the phone more than once. A merry Christmas indeed.

God bless us every one!

And don't forget to Elf yourself one more time!
The Greer Family
The Jackson Kids
The Sandifer Troops
and finally ... we go to the dogs!

Happy Holidays!

I'm getting tired of everybody giving "Happy Holidays" a hard time. If I mean Merry Christmas, I say, "Merry Christmas." If I mean Happy New Year, I say, "Happy New Year." But if I mean Happy Holidays, I say, "Happy Holidays."

From Thanksgiving to New Year's we have Thanksgiving, Hannukah, Christmas, Kwanza, and New Year's. Five holidays celebrated by many people and groups in part or whole. So starting just before Thanksgiving, I start wishing folks Happy Holidays, because there are five of them celebrated in America over the following 5 or 6 weeks.

I don't use Happy Holidays to be politically correct and to avoid offending someone with a Merry Christmas. I say what I mean and mean what I say.

If you mean Happy Holidays, say Happy Holidays. Or, if you can't bring yourself to do it, say, "Happy ThanksKuhChristKwanYear." Just don't let the nit-pickers win!

IT'S versus ITS -- Get IT Right!

I see it everywhere, not only in emails and blogs, but also in professional publications. It's driving me crazy with its ubiquity!

It's very simple. I don't know why it's and its give writers so much trouble. Well, check that, I do know most of the reason -- it's because when we want to make a word possesive, we usually add an apostrophe before adding the final S -- "That book is John's." "I'm going to Grandma's house."

But IT in the possessive does not add the apostrophe. "The car went its fastest." "The school raised its scores." Possessive IT - NO apostrophe.

IT'S is only for contractions. That is, turning two words into one. >>> It is = It's. "It's a crying shame." ... >>> It has = It's. "It's always been that way."

So, if you mean something that BELONGS to IT, use ITS. If you mean IT Is or IT Has -- if you can say what you mean using those two word combinations -- use IT'S.

It's beautiful in its simplicity.

Fantasy Update #17

NFL: My lone team that made it into championship playoffs lost in the first round, thanks to Tony Romo's miserable performance against the Eagles two Sundays ago. That team finishes 9-5-1. My two Fox Sports teams had 6-7 records but those leagues have a consolation bracket of playoffs; both teams had a first round bye, then won in the next two rounds to each finish 8-7, one for 7th place, one for 9th, in 12-team leagues. An ugly season all around. Can't wait for next year!

NBA: My Kevin Garnett team has won two in a row and is 5-3. My Kobe team is on a 4-game losing streak and is 2-6. Could it be because I love the Celtics and not the Lakers? Nahhh.

C'mon -- go ELF yourself

This has to be the absolute funnest website out there right now! Go have some holiday fun right here. ... Be prepared to be patient, though -- I think millions of people are hitting this site, and it takes a little time for the pages to load. But it's worth the wait.

See for yourself:

American Icons
The Greer Family
The Jackson Kids
The Sandifer Troops
and finally ... we go to the dogs!

Merry Christmas!

Fantasy Update #16: End of the Regular Season

NFL: Well, I never had a season like this before. Only one of my 6 teams finished with a winning record, one finished .500 (see update #15), and four had losing records. Ugh. My winner snuck into the playoffs, thanks to a tie back in week 3 -- I finished 9-4-1 and bumped the guy who was 9-5 by 0.036 points. A fraction of a fraction. "It's a game of fractions." ... Three of my other teams are done for the year, but my two Fox Fantasy teams (both 6-7) get to keep playing because Fox has both championship and consolation flights in the playoffs. So these two teams have a shot at finishing with winning records even though they can't compete for the title.

NBA: Both my teams lost again last week. Both are in contention to win this week. Two nights left to play in this week.

Fantasy Update #15: a SWEET moment

NFL Fantasy Football.

My Ripsnorters team is 6-7 entering the weekend, the last game of the regular season. I need to win to avoid finishing with a losing record. I'm not going to make the playoffs in this league -- I'll finish 7-7 or 6-8. A big difference.

I'm trailing 97-61 after the Thursday and Sunday games. My opponent and I each have one player left to perform in tonight's game on Monday Night Football. He has New Orleans running back Reggie Bush. I have New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees. Both players have had up and down seasons. I will need abig performance by Brees to pull this game out.

I get the first break -- Reggie Bush will not play. He has a torn posterior cruciate ligament and his season is over. I need Brees to earn 27 points to pull out a victory. So far this season Brees has averaged 17.7 points per game. His high was 37 points in week 8. His low was MINUS 1 point in week 3. If he scores his average tonight, I'll lose by 9.

I get the second break, too -- Drew is en fuego tonight! He has 250 yards passing and two touchdowns by halftime. I trail by 4. Now he's thrown his third touchdown in the 3rd quarter and piled up 29 points (so far) -- it's a SWEET moment to be watching as the numbers on my scoreboard change to Ripsnorters 100, Atlanta 97. Go, Drew, go!

I'm gonna win ... unless Drew suddenly starts losing me points by losing fumbles and throwing interceptions. careful, Drew, careful!

OK, I won't have a winning season. But I'll finish with a win, and avoid a losing season. You take your moral vistories where you find 'em.

You really can't make this stuff up!

Ham for Hannukah!?!

Check it out here: Balducci's boo-boo

Meanwhile ...

this Hog appears to be hamstrung ...

University of Arkansas

Athletics Director Jeff Long ...

his bacon's in the fire.

While this former Hog is still a Hot Dog ...

When you say Houston,

duck or pucker!

Fantasy Update #14 - Updated Dec. 7

NFL: I went 3-3 last week. I have 4 losing teams, 1 at .500, and one winner, at 8-4-1. If that team wins this week -- last week of the regular season -- I could slip into the playoffs, depending on what happens to a couple of other guys. If I lose, no way. It'll kill me to have 6 teams and go 0-fer the playoffs. C'mon, Hawgballers! It's my Tony Romo team, so I need Tony to absolutely slay the Lions.

NBA: My first losing weekend, 0-2. Both teams lost. One is 2-3, the other 3-2. Patience -- it's a long season.

Razorback Football Coaching Search: new Arkansas AD Jeff Long is at least 0-2 ... er, 0-3 (Tuberville, Bowden, Grobe). This situation will soon turn ... er, has turned ... from awkward to outright embarassing. Git R Done, Jeffie Boy!