Twelve Step Sports Addict

This past week has been so hectic trying to get my new little boy to learn the house rules. I found out that he likes to watch Sportscenter, and I think for some reason he enjoyed watching Notre Dame get slaughtered last night at the hands of USC, because everytime they went 3 and out, he ran around the room. I wonder if Charlie Weis will keep his job after this season, but I heard that the university is looking forward to a good recruiting class and might let him stay one more year or so.

The Bears game should be very good tonight, although I hate having to wait until 7pm to watch it. I am a huge fan of Adrian Petersen and watching him during his Oklamhoma days and I predicted then that he would be a show stopper in the NFL. As much as I enjoy watching him play, I hope he sucks today and the Bears can get a win and stay alone on top of the NFC central.

Reggie is wearing me out, and as much as I love puppies, I don’t love how they can’t hold their poops or pee. Twice Reggie decided he wanted to finger paint his cage, and since he didn’t have paint, he used poop. I was watching Lock-up Raw on MSNBC, so maybe he got the idea from the inmates on TV, but he made a mess. Yesterday, he must have ate something that I didn’t see because he had gas so bad, I couldn’t hold him. He likes to doze off laying on my chest so he can feel my heart beat, but the constant flow of pug farts was choking me, so I had to put him down. He stunk up the basement so bad that we all could smell it upstairts. Wow, for a little guy, he puts up quite a stink. He is learning how to sit today and lay down. He takes to training very well as he LOVES liver treats. Reggie is a great tool for recovery, as I could never think about having a drink and no matter how messed up I might feel, looking into those little pug eyes melts any urge to splurge away. Go Bears. ML

Wow, I am so happy that tommorrow is Thanksgiving, so I can sleep in and just enjoy the day before the full frontal assult on my body come dinner time. The good thing is, this will be the first Thanksgiving in a while that I have been sober and didn’t go home after dinner and get bombed. What really makes that pathetic is that I have spent the last few years in retail and I have been tired as all Hell for black Friday because of my drinking. I need to sleep in because raising a baby pug is hard work. I am being very diligent on the training, especially the potty training. I sleep with him in the room at night so that he can get accostomed to the house and not feel alone. I could not have asked for a better little guy. He is about 95% potty trained, he has learned to hold it in his crate at night, although he did have two instances in the first few days where he went poop and then used the doodoo to paw paint his crate. He goes into the crate when I say Crate time and has stopped crying when he is in there. He knows his name and looks when I say it, and he walks next to me without pulling at all. All of this in 5 days. He is super smart, probably smarter than me. If he had fingers, he could probably write a better blog than me. haha. I hope everyone has a great Turkey Day.

ML

There has been so much going on these past couple days, that I don’t have enough room to write about it all. Not that anyone would really care anyway. Go Bears!! Nice game against the hapless Rams. Granted, the Bears were supposed to kick the crap out of those losers, but at least they did, lest we forget the last time the Bears played the Lions and almost lost to a team that hasn’t won a game this year. This Sunday should be an amazing game against the Vikings. This is a must win for the Bears, so I can only hope that Tommy Harris decides to play more than 1 play for every 10, and Brian Urlacher grows a set and comes to play.

The SCORE event was amazing. I have never been at a live radio broadcast, and it was so cool. I am an avid SCORE listener (670am) and watching Hampton and Holmes do their thing was awesome. The two things that really amazed me was the one, how nice Laurence Holmes was. He was totally gracious and polite and very knowledgeable. Most celebrities are conceded, but he thanked not only me, but my mom for coming out, and took the time to take a picture with me. Also, I was amazed by how enormous Dan Hampton was. He looked like a giant, and even though he is older now, he was jacked up. He must still lift cars or something for a workout because he looked like he could kill eveyone in the room without breaking a sweat.

The last thing that was good for me to see, was a lady that was at the event who was smashed beyond belief. Wow, she was giving everyone kisses, jumping on stage, and just being annoying. I thought to myself that I was that bad at one time and must have made a total fool of myself. Seeing that I used to be that distgusting, is enough to keep me sober. More to come….ML

 Well, it finally happened and I got my puppy!! This is the best picture that I can come up with of him right now as I need to buy a digital camera so he doesn’t look so grainy. His name is Reggie (yes, after Reggie Dunlop from Slapshot), and he is 4 months old. He was born 7/26/2008 and his parents names were Great Escape (mom) and Sisco Kid (dad). I got him at a pet store and he and I bonded the minute I saw him.  He is a pure bred pug, and by fate, he as well as all the other puppies were 50% off. Thanks to the crappy economy, I got this little miracle. He is super energetic, loving and so very smart. He already knows to go in his crate when I tell him to, he is doing great with the potty training, and well, is just amazing. Potty training is very tiresome, waking up every two hours to take him out in the cold, but it well worth it. I will write a lot more about him and the Bears game, along with the amazing time I had at the Score broadcast and meeting Dan Hampton. In the meantime, it’s about that time, and little Reggie has to pee. He has his first vet visit tomorrow so it is a big day. Thank you all for your comments and ideas, and I will post more pics as I get them. ML

I couldn’t think of a better title for this blog as I heard that Lou Pinella and G. (I won’t even try to spell his name) Soto, won manager of the year and rookie of the year respectively. Wow, getting a bonus for being the biggest flops in the major leagues. I am a little upset that Alexi Rameriez didn’t win rookie of the year for the White Sox, I mean the man did have 4 grand slams in a season and the White Sox did much better than anyone predicted they would the prior year, but I guess it pays to be a loser. At least Pinella had the balls to give his bonus money to charity, knowing damn well he doesn’t deserve a cent of that money. Two years in a row, being the best team and getting SWEPT out of the first round of the playoffs. Lou, they should have awarded you with a pink slip, not a bonus.

The White Sox got rid of Nick Swisher to the Yankees. I HATE THE YANKEES!! Not as much as I despise those playoff choking ass clowns from the North side, but I hate that Swish got the ax. True, he had a terrible batting average, but he was well rounded and was good in the clubhouse. But it’s the major leagues, you don’t hit, you don’t stay.

Also today, I am looking forward to, as I actually will get, UFC 91. As I explained before, it will be worth it to see 45 year old Couture beat the living steroids out of WWE superturd, Brock Lesnar. One thing I don’t understand is that those WWE stars actually put their championships on their resume (Brock brags he was the youngest WWE Champ). What!!? Sorry Brock, everyone and their mother knows those dances are predetermined. Yes, I know it’s athletic, and people do and can get hurt, but let’s not act like you were some spirit of Mohammed Ali during that time. Even bad boy Ken Shamrock puts his WWE credentials on his website. Guess Tito wasn’t to worried about that when he pummeled your ass three times in a row. I always liked you Ken, but dude, calm down, the ship has sailed, arrived and then sunk.

I am so excited about the November 15th Ultimate Fighting Championship card of Randy Couture and Brock Lesnar. I have a feeling that Randy is going to school the 265lbs behemoth from the WWE. My brother and I have been watching the UFC since UFC 1, way before it became cool, when little Brazilian Royce Gracie was choking the living Hell out the competition. I saw the first match Randy Couture ever fought when took down and choked out another huge man who claimed he was going to kill everyone in the tournament. Randy is a hero of mine as he is an older man that defies the odds and wins. He works incredibly hard at his craft and it shows in the ring. The other thing that I admire about the man, is that all accounts say that he is the nicest professional athlete you will ever meet. I never liked athletes that are jerks. In my opinion, there is no reason to. These guys get paid a huge amount of money to play games. I would play professional football or basketball for what I made as a sales manager if I could. I guess at some point, they lost the love of game. While I understand the neanderthal gene that makes these men badasses, I never understood being a prick when you leave your particular field of battle. Randy seems very polite and always give his opponents a ton of credit even if he just got done making them his bitch on national TV. I really respect a man like that I hope he knocks Brock back into the WWE on the 15th. Many people think Brock is way too big for Randy, but watching “the natural” completely destroy 6 foot 8 Tim Sylvia, makes me think that Brock had better watch out. If I had extra money, which I don’t right now, I would buy this PPV, but I will just have to settle to reading about it on Sherdog.com. Anyone interested in MMA, needs to see that sight, it is very informative.

I have been getting more ideas for a puppy name and I want to thank everyone that wrote a comment. Please keep them coming, and I can’t wait when I finally get the little guy so that I can post a pic of him in all his puggly glory. Here are some of the names that have been recommended.

Oscar, Mongo, Flint, Quincy, Bebop, Rocksteady, Pete, Killer, Sampson.

I like the big dog names a bit since it is cute for a pug. Anyone who has ever owned a pug before knows they are full of personality and make great watchdogs. One of the first thing I am going to buy when I get the little man, is a huge “beware of dog” sign that I will put on my front door. Then when the little pug comes running it will be so cute. Yes, I know I sound like a girl when it comes to dogs, but I am an animal lover, it’s just the way I am.

On next Tues, I am hoping to finally get my DUI case officially resolved and start paying court costs. It will be very nice to put that behind me and move forward. My lawyers pulled a miracle decision for me and I couldn’t feel more grateful and blessed. I have always been blessed with great doctors that have saved my life and now blessed with great lawyers that have saved not only my soul, but my record. It’s things like this that keep me from the bottle, the Lord has given me a new start, and He is not someone you want to make look like a fool. ML

 Here is a clip I found on youtube. I LOVE the movie the 300 and I love the show Family Guy, here is a mix of both……

Since today is Veteran’s day, I wanted to take a minute to honor all the veterans out there that risked their lives to protect this country. Thank you. Never having served in the military myself, I can not fathom what it would be like to be in a war zone. But I do know, next to what you all went through, my problems are pathetic in comparison. While watching the History Channel today, I saw many shows about wars, stemming from WWI to Operation Iraqi Freedom. The fear that those men must have felt not knowing if they were in a snipers sight, or walking next to IED on a road would have paralyzed me. It seems surviving a war is a winning lottery ticket, as it just takes one bomb, one bullet to end your life. It is unbelievable the amount of sacrifice soldiers make for this country. I don’t care if civilians agree with a war or not, those soldiers are just doing what they are told. I am ashamed that my house is the only one on my block that had a flag out today. People need to stop immortalizing professional athletes as heroes, and use that man or woman, who may not run a fast 40 yard dash, or have a sick jump shot, but put their lives on the line, so we all can watch sports, write blogs, and be free. God Bless all you brave people, I for one, will never forget you.

I guess it’s not the times that are changing for me as much as my luck. Not only have got a few very awesome jobs lined up, but I won something on the radio and I NEVER win anything on the radio. I texted 670 the Score today and won tickets to the VIP live showing of the Hampton and Holmes show. It is being held in some hotel downtown Chicago and I get to listen and watch a live talk show with Dan Hampton (Hall of Fall defensive tackle from the 85 Bears Super Bowl team) and Lawarence Holmes from the Score. At the end, I get to go to a private room and ask the two of them questions about the Bears/Packers game. What an amazing award for a sports junkie like myself.

That is really all I have today as the Bears game is pretty self explanatory since they looked pretty awful the whole game. It’s not Grossman like everyone is thinking, but the defense looked pathetic letting a 35 year old quarterback look like Joe Montana in his prime. I spent today, after taking care of my business, with my brother playing the new game Gears of War 2. Great game for anyone that has an XBOX 360. I don’t get into video games that much, but this one is pretty addictive. I had a great day and will report more about the Bulls and Blackhawks in blogs to come.

I know that this blog has to do with sports, but lately I have talking a bit about my life and how it relates to alcoholism. Yesterday was my birthday and I had a very relaxing and fun day. I wish the weather was a little better, but I was able to get outside for a very long run, and since I pushed myself really hard, my legs feel like Jello and the rest of my body feels like I got into a fight with a lawnmower. But it is a good sore. I got to see a picture of myself from last Christmas today when I looked pasty, white, with raccoon eyes, and my cheeks spread out farther than my ears. (Both cheeks, ass and face.) Safe to say I was a really fat, unhealthy man. 99% of that was due to the drinking, and when I drank, I liked to eat fast food. It was like my body would be telling me to quit being a jerk off and stop, and the greasy food somehow offset the effects of the gallons of alcohol that I was pouring in. I would think that with all the vomiting I was doing at the time, most of that food didn’t stay in my system long, but the 5000 calories of just booze I was taking in, was enough to last me 4 days, plus anything else I ate, just turned into my gut protruding beyond my toes. I must say, it is nice these days to look down and see my shoes again, my eyes are clear, and my face doesn’t look like Peter Griffin from Family Guy.

Since my brother took me out last night, and we went to Famous Dave’s, I ate a ton. If you haven’t been there in the midwest, it is a great BBQ place, but the portions are huge. Since I felt guilty, I pushed myself in cold weather to run longer than normal, to burn off that impending lard. Overall, I am happy today and although I am getting older and the girls I used to check out are now maybe 10 years younger than me, there is no need to be down. It is a new beginning for me, and a healthy new life. I keep holding on to that hope that I can stay healthy and sober. Anyone struggling with this disease just needs to have faith, hope, and confidence. I was a terrible, awful drunk. I did things that will stay with me always when I was drinking and although I never did anything that required any terrible punishment, I was a few more drinks to getting there.  It’s very hard climbing out of Hell, it’s a long way up, but I see the light at the end, and that light represents peace. That’s something I haven’t felt since I was 17. It’s worth it.

Also, I got a few responses for the new puppy names. I got Shooter (from Hoosiers) and Wrigley (from that piss smelling, disgusting, degenerate filled, death trap home of the Cubs). Thanks for the responses and I would LOVE more. Thanks even for Wrigley too, I really appreciate it, but I have a reputation to keep up on this site as a Cub hater, so I must respectfully decline.

Today is my birthday, and yes, I am feeling very old, although I know that I shouldn’t. As much as I am not looking forward to birthdays anymore, I have many reasons to be very thankful for this one. For starters, I am blessed to have an amazing family that has never left my side through all my shenanigans and have sacrificed a lot, especially emotions to get me through this incredible struggle with alcoholism. I found it easier to deal with not only with a great family, much better than I deserve, but also giving myself to the program of AA, something I never did as I “white knuckled” the first months of sobriety. I found a new meeting two days ago filled with really great people that welcomed me like a family member. To any addict reading this, it is important to find meetings that fit your style, otherwise, you are going through the motions and it doesn’t really help you. Also, I am grateful that this is the first birthday since I was 17, that I have been sober. That is a horrible fact to think about, but since I don’t want to dwell on the past, I just have a new future to look forward to. I fit into clothes that I haven’t been able to fit into since high school, and am loving every minute of it.

The other thing I am grateful for is I found out that I am getting a dog for my birthday from my parents.  I am obsessed about dogs and have had a major hole in my heart for two years since my fiancee left me, and took my dog with her to another state. I haven’t seen my little pug now in two years, and I have to say, it has been a major source of sorrow for me, and a major trigger for me to drink. Knowing I am going to get another little buddy (a pug) to take care of, makes me incredibly happy. It will take some time to find the right pug, from the right place, but it will be a little bundle of joy. Since I am finding out that I have a small following of readers, I am asking for help to name the little guy. My last pug was named Quigley. I still love him dearly and I love Irish names as I am half mick. (and no that doesn’t have anything to do with being an alcoholic). My brother, parents and I have been thinking of names and I am going to list a few and why we thought of them. These are just a few. It will be a boy pug, only because I had a boy before and I know how to handle it easier than a female dog. Please comment if you have any name ideas!!

Quinn- Short for “The Mighty Quinn.” (Irish and cute for a little pug)

Flynn- Also Irish and from Jeff Bridges from the movie “Tron”

Jules/Vincent- From “Pulp Fiction”

Max- Short for Mad Max, everybody knows that.

Duke- John Wayne

Jeff- My brother’s pick as having a dog with a human name is just cute.

Paulie/Rocky/Mick-  From the movie “Rocky”.

Reggie- Paul Newman’s character in the movie “Slapshot”.

Ace- From “Casino”

Maverick/Jester- From “Top Gun”

These are just a few, and I have a while to decide, but I am very excited. On another note, Bears/Titans on Sunday with Rex starting at QB. I like Rex Grossman even though he is accident prone and too small to be an effective NFL QB, but through all the boos and press conferences after bad games, he never blamed anyone but himself, even when it wasn’t his fault. He stood there like a man and took all that crap on his shoulders and kept coming back. That is great character in my eyes, and if not for the Bears, I would love for him to become a great quarterback someday. In a time when NFL players are crying, cursing, backstabbing teammates, Rex was a great example of maturity in a league that desperately needs it. Cub fans have more reason to cry as the economy is hurting the sale of the Cubs and one man that might actually do everything he can to win a world series, Mark Cuban, probably won’t get a chance to buy, as a report has stated that Bud Selig won’t let him. Looks like even MLB even wants the Cubbies to suck. Someone had better buy this team fast, before Wrigley Field finally says enough and falls apart during a home game. The only reason Cub fans would be pissed would be because a collapse like that might interfere with their cell phone signals…..

Also, one last thing, my earlier post I made a mistake and said the Padres were going win the World Series. I meant the Phillies, but I was reading an article on the Padres while I was writing so I had a braindead moment. I got a comment about and I want to thank that person “HawaiinPun” for finding the error and calling me out on it. Also thanks for reading. I am happy some people find this blog entertaining.