Cardinals! Cardinals!

Spring Training officially started Monday! Here's whats going on:
*The 2006 World Series Champions, the St. Louis Cardinals will recieve their World Series rings on April 3rd, before their second game with the Mets. Fans in attendance will recieve replica rings to comemerate this momentous event. Tickets for this game are available through the Pujols 5 pack.
*Albert Pujols is an American citizen (old news, I know), so congrats to him. He was interviewed by News Channel 5 which featured his adorable son A.J. Wherever Pujols goes, A.J. goes.
*Yadier Molina played winter ball in Puerto Rico this winter so his family could see him play. Molina is very confident in his hitting abilities for the upcoming season. He told reporters that he is going to be a 300 hitter this year. After his amazing post season, it would be nice to see that he can keep the momentum going.
*John Rodriguez has also changed things up over the winter. According to News Channel 5 he started running(why run? who is chasing you?), and gave up pizza (the horror! Pizza is an essential American food, plus its yummy!) J-Rod claims that giving up pizza was the toughest part of his offseason. Rodriguez is also blogging again. Hopefully he will keep up with it all season.
*Jason Isringhausen is recovering nicely from his postseason hip surgery. He is being cautious but he is confident in his return to the reliever role.
*Jim Edmonds is recovering from toe and shoulder surgery, so he hasn't started workouts with the team yet. He is going to be held back another two/three weeks. Edmonds is not feeling any effects of the post-concussion sydrome that plagued him at the end of the season. Edmonds has a known aversion to Spring Training, so well known that it is a running joke in the Cardinals clubhouse.
*Scott Rolen's shoulder is feeling fine, and Rolen says he is in a better position than he was last Spring Training.
*Chris Carpenter is looking to add to his already impressive arsenal. Carpenter wants a better handle on his change up and his curveball. Batters that have faced him have made little contact with the balls Carp has thrown. Carp is also the undisputed leader Cards corps. He is the only starter still on the team from the fantastic 2004 season.
*Chris Duncan is hitting the batting cages hard and is constantly working on his outfielding.
*Edmonds and Juan Encarnacion are the only definate outfielders, so left field is up for grabs. Both J-Rod and Duncan are going to give it everything they got to win that position.
As always everything read here can be read in more detail on the cardinals website: www.stlcardinals.com
I am super excited about the upcoming season which can not come soon enough. Meanwhile, I am reading everything available on the Cards website and in the St. Louis Post Dispatch. Football season is over, so I am going through sports withdrawl. I want my baseball! Opening day is April 1st, I will not be one of the lucky people in attendance, but you can bet that I will be watching every minute of it. If I can't watch it (Heavan forbid) I will be either listening to it or "watching" it via the amazing feature on the Cardinals website that allows viewers to see the location of the pitches, and keep you up informed of whats going on when you don't have access to the radio or the tv.
*Por Siempre, Let's Go Cardinals!! :)

Presidential Hopefuls

Presidential Elections are not until November of 2008, that is two years from now! And yet we are already hearing about canidates who are hoping to run. Hilary Clinton was one of the first to put her "name in the hat". I can not in good conscience vote for her; I would love to see a female president, but she cheated her way into the senate and besides she has already had 8 years in the White House. Bill was in charge? Yeah, right. Then there is the freshman senator Barack Obamba. Senator Obama if elected to president would be the first African American President. I am all for that however, I do not believe that Obama is the right choice. Not now at least, maybe after a few more terms in the senate, then maybe he might be ready. He does not have near enough experience to run this country. Obama has only been a senator for 2 years; he does not have anywhere near the experience needed for being president. Just b/c he is African American and young is not a good reason to rush him towards the White House. We need a president who knows what they are doing; not someone who is still learning the ropes. Being president is a major job; it is on a whole other level than being senator. Everybody is raving about Obama; but what has he done? I haven't heard anything about him; what issues has he spearheaded, or what changes has he helped implement? We have at least a year and a half before the real campaigning and mudsinging begins. I don't know who I am voting for, but it will not be for Obama or Clinton. Its too early to tell. A lot of people say they are going to run for president, but they end up dropping out before going before their party for the right to represent. All I know is that I want a president that has experience in politics; lots of experience. I am merely expressing my opinion here; everyone is entitled to their own opinion, and politics is one of those touchy subjects. Don't start a debate with me b/c I will not engage. We have a lot of time left, and right now, I am focusing on who is charge at the moment, not who could be in charge. Personally, I support Bush (yes, I'm republican) and I tend to vote Republican. I really just want the person is most capable of doing a good job.

Spring Training has arrived!!

Pitchers and Catchers reported to Spring Training in Jupiter, Florida today!! They didn't have to do anything today, but about 20 players participated in a light game of catch. A few position players were also in camp; Chris Duncan, who has been down there since December working on his outfielding skills, Skip Schumaker, Albert Pujols, of course. Workouts begin t/m. The rest of the team reports to Jupiter on Monday February 19th. A bit of interesting news; Braden Looper is in competition to become one of the 5 starting pitchers. Looper is excited with the prospect of being a starter instead of a reliever, his usual role. Click here for the official report.
*Por Siempre, Let's Go Cards!!

Molina vs. Wainwright

After Adam Wainwright struck out the last batter in Game 5 of the World Series, catcher Yadier Molina pocketed the ball. Wainwright spoke w/ Molina, and said that since he threw the last strike of the game he got the ball. Molina agreed. However, the ball in question is sitting in Molina's home office in Puerto Rico. Wainwright and Molina are still playfully argueing over who gets the ball. When asked if he will give the ball to Wainwright, Molina repllied "I don't think so". Molina's agruement for keeping said ball is that he didn't have any other momento from the other games and he worked really hard in the post season so he deserves to keep the ball. It was an interesting article in the St. Louis Post Distpatch; it made the front page. Personally, I think Molina should keep it for a year, then Wainwright gets it for a year, then they give it to the Cardinals Hall of Fame. Click here for the official report!
*Spring Training starts February 15th!!
*Por Siempre, Let's Go Cardinals!!

Loki is one year old!

On February 8th, Loki turned one year old. To celebrate this happy event we gave Loki a new fleece blankee. It is pink with sheeps. We also took pics of her with a SpongeBob Square Pants party hat on while she sat on her new blankee. New pics will be posted soon. Even tho Loki is a year old, she hasn't been with us a full year yet- when she has been another celebration will take place (very minor).

PC Sucks

Superbowl Commercials are often the highlight of the Superbowl event. Every year advertisers try to do outdo each other by creating the best commercial. They spend millions of dollars just for a 2 or more seconds blip. Well, Snickers managed to pay the hefty due and landed a commercial during the Superbowl. The commercial featured a guy eating a snickers bar while working on a car, then the other guy who is helping him takes a bite at the other end. They end up redoing the famous scene from Disney's Lady and the Tramp. *Each eating a string of spaghetti and end up kissing each other* After this "kiss" the guys freak out, and then declare they must do something "manly" to erase this act. So they rip out a section of their chest hair. It was kinda funny, and some people liked it. Where is this commerical now? Its off the air, it's been banned. Why? B/c members of the gay community claimed it was too "homophobic" and therefore damaging to their image. So in an attempt to apease them and be more "PC", the commercial was pulled.
Everything in this day and age must be PC. It sucks. So much for freedom of speech.

Colts win the Superbowl!!

Congrats to the Indianapolis Colts! 2007 Superbowl Champions!! I was actually cheering on the Colts mainly to tick off the parents who were cheering for the Chicago Bears. I really didn't care who won, but it was cool that the team I was cheering for won. Chicago struck first scoring a touchdown on the kickoff. Then Indy scored. Indy gained the lead berfore the half, and kept the lead for the rest of the game. The entire game was played in the rain, but that didn't stop the Colts from becoming the champs! Colts beat the Bears 29-17. The game was great. The commercials were great! Colts quarterback Peyton Manning was named MVP for the superbowl. Click here for the exact recap of the game.

Cardinals Update

*Cardinals resigned Preston Wilson to a one year contract.
*Pitcher Jeff Weaver signed a one year contract with Seattle. Dumb move on his part, he was having a horrible year and then the Cardinals picked him up and Duncan worked his majic. W/o Duncan, Weaver will spiral downward once more.
*Anthony Reyes could be a starter for the 2007 Season.
*If Jason Isringhausen is even close to being ready, Adam Wainwright will be a starter. Wrong move. Adam Wainwright shined as a closer in the post season, let's keep a good thing going! Click here for rotation information.
* The health of the outfielders is an issue for the Birds on the Bat. Jim Edmonds is recovering from a offseason shoulder and toe surgery. Juan Encarnacion is also recouperating from a winter surgery on his left wrist. Newcomer Chris Duncan will be one of many putting his cap in for a posisiton in the outfield. John Rodriguez and So Taguchi also want a chance. Don't forget about Scott Spezio and Skip Schumaker.
* It will be an interesting spring training to see who does what. Hopefully the players will all be healthy and ready to go by opening day.
Por Siempre, Let's Go Cardinals!!

Cards will host 2009 All Star Game!!

*It's official! The St. Louis Cardinals will host the 2009 All Star game! By then the ballpark village should be up and running. This is an awesome opportunity for St. Louis and the Cardinals. It should bring in a lot of revenue for the city and many tourists! St. Louis will get the chance to show everyone why we are the best baseball town in the world!
*The 2006 World Series Team visited the White House and the President yesterday. About 20 members of the team including Manager Tony LaRussa and some coaches were in attendance. Former Cardinal Jeff Soupon was in attendance, however Jim Edmonds and Albert Pujols were missing. Pujols is in the Dominican Republic for the next month for his charity organization.
*So Taguchi was signed to a one year contract with an option for the 2008 season. He will being going against Chris Duncan for a spot in left field. Click here for the details.
*Por Siempre, Let's Go Cardinals!!
Spring Training starts on Febuary 14th! Let the countdown begin!!

Miracle in Missouri part 2

Shawn Hornbeck, now 15, and Ben Ownby, 13, are both safe at home with their families. Neither boy has spoken to the press, and that's good; it should be a long while before either speaks to the news hungry media. More news regarding the story has come to light. The man who held both boys captive is Michael J. Devlin, a former employee of a Kirkwood Imo's and a funeral home. Last night on the news, lawyers for Devlin came forward and inisisted that Devlin is innocent. Yeah right. The guy took Ownby and held Hornbeck for over 4 years. Of course his family is saying that Devlin is innocent. A new group has formed on Facebook and it kinda makes me mad. Number one the some of the facts are wrong, 2) some of the comments are horrible (hes kinda cute-not appropriate), and 3) the spelling is awful. The guy who showed police the white pickup truck is Geoff Hadler. The most reliable source for details on this story is the news, not third hand stories.
Thank God for the safe return of both boys. Time is what these two need; time heals all wounds.

William "Ben" Ownby and Shawn Hornbeck found!!

Miracle in Missouri; that's what they are saying all over. ""We have some good news and we have some probably unbelievable news," (Franklin County Sheriff Gary) Toelke told reporters this afternoon."
Today missing boy Ben Ownby was found in Kirkwood, MO. Not only was Ownby found, Shawn Hornnback was also found at the same residence!! Ownby has been missing since Monday and Hornback has been missing since October 2002! Police had been at the apartment complex to serve a warrent the other night when they noticed the white pickup that resembled the one that supposedly took Ownby. They took pics of it and today found not only Ownby but also Hornbeck, who stepped forward and identified himself. Click here for all the details of this amazing story.

No Hot H2O = Not happy JBear

So our hot water heater broke sometime on Monday. I discovered the lack of hot water while taking my shower; I couldn't get the water hot enough. Later, it was discovered that the hot water heater was leaking and on Tuesday no hot water was to be had. I have been sick since last Wed, and felt absolutley horrible on Monday and all I wanted was a nice hot shower before my doctor appt. Not an option. So mom and dad went to Lowes and picked out a new hot water heater yesterday, which had a dent in it but was otherwise functional so the guy who sold it had to take off 279 dollars, so they got a hot water heater for 100 dollars with a nine year warrenty (I think). Right now our new hot water heater tank is being stalled. By who? None other than a scouter friend and his son, who happended to be in the same fraternity as me. That's right, it's Joe and his son Danny Flees! They have been here since 11ish, and had to leave and get a pipe, and just returned so hopefully they will finish soon, and then I will have to wait another hour and a half for a hot shower. Which I am sooo looking forward to. Tuesday night mom and I ventured to Riverchase to sit in the hottub and have a hot shower. Dad and little brother have taken cold showers, which I am not insane enough to even try. So now I sit here waiting until I can take my nice hot shower! At least I will be getting one tonight. Then I am going to Gloria Jeans, then Olive Garden for yummy Italian food, and then home to watch Chicago! Things will be much better when I finally get my hot shower!

25 Reasons to Date a Swimmer!!

1. We like it wet
2. We are used to wearing next to nothing in front of people
3. We are experts at putting on rubber and can do it fast
4. We know how to push it and work under HARD conditions
5. We believe practice makes perfect and will any time day or night
6. We are used to doing things till you can't go on any longer
7. Sprinters are fast and efficient. Distance swimmers can last a long time
8. We are always ready to dive in head first
9. We may get tired but never stop in the middle
10. We do it in the water
11. We start fast, stay strong, and finish hard
12. We are always wet and half naked
13. We are able to do it on our backs or our stomachs
14. We can do it fast or slow
15. We can do it 4 different ways
16. We know how to get dressed and undressed in no time
17. We are always improving our times
18. We are better when we put our hips into it
19. We have have excellent stamina and endurance
20. We are not afraid of pain
21. We always finish what they start
22. We always yell and shout
23. We can perform well anywhere
24. We've been well trained...lots of training to get this good
25. We are always looking for the perfect stroke

Random

Christmas season is over at the Noel house. Today I took down our lights from our bushes, I removed the candles from the window, and helped mom gather the random Christmas stuff scattered across the house. T/m the tree will come down. My little brother's bday is Jan. 5th so everything has to be down before then. This was done when we were little so that my brother could distinguish between Christmas and his bday.
*So I viewed the infamous clip of John K. Ottenad (former Region 8 Director) singing "I'm a Little Tea Pot". Very funny! I about fell out of my chair laughing.
*Loki is almost done w/ her giant bone that she got for Christmas. She has been working hard at it for a week now. She can now pick it up and wants to be in your lap and chew on her bone! It's cute, but when you are on the floor and you have a 48 pound puppy crawling all over you, you get lots of bruises!
*It is warm and sunny in St. Louis, while some enjoy this weather (froggiegirl for instance), I am hating it. I want my snow and cold weather! I have some really cute sweaters and I want to wear them! I have some hoodies I want to wear too! So the weather needs to get colder and snow needs to head our way. Hey Denver, send some of that snow to St. Louis!
*APO Nationals was a huge success or so I've heard. I wasn't able to make it, but several of my friends were in attendance. Lucky for me I have som GREAT friends who kept me updated and shared stories. Shout out to Robert R. who kept me in the loop in regards to legislation. The main issue I was worried about was the Toast song. Last Nationals in Denver 2004, we (the delegates) spent 3 and a half hours arguing about it. Luckily, the Toast song stays intact and I am happy for it! Tradition is important and I'm really glad it wasn't changed. I also got some friends who said they missed me or would miss me at Nationals- shout out to Steph, George, Katrina, and Marlene. I miss all of my brothers! I am hoping to attend sectionals in the spring, then I will get to see all of my brothers. Tho if you are in St. Louis, call me and we can do something!
*Soon there will be a countdown until Cardinals Spring Training begins. Catchers and pitchers report to Jupiter sometime in Febuary.
Por Siempre: Let's Go Cardinals!!

Welcome to 2007

Well it's a new year, and with it hopefully comes some changes. I am hoping to get a full time job this year and start living in the "real world". Also, I am hoping to change some other things; my financial situation, my health, etc. Hopefully, I won't make as many mistakes this year as I did last year. Last year is over; this is a new year thus giving me a chance to start fresh. Something like working full time will give me a place to focus my energy and keeping me from bored. So bring on the new year; I'm ready for some changes and all that comes with those changes!!
*Last night, I was at Froggiegirl and Gimlet's house. While Gimlet watched football, Froggiegirl and I watched The Devil Wears Prada and munched on chips and dip. Along w/ jellybeans and choc. covered raisens (which I ate b/c Froggiegirl doesn't like them). It was a tame New Year's Eve, but great. The chinnies entertained us very well, jumping around and making funny noises. Fipsy and Roo liked sitting on my feet, and Sully made all sorts of noises as he moved around the room. Chinnies are soo cute and funny. Loki was excited to see me when I got home and as usual acted like she had never gotten attention in her life. Of course, I was too tired to give her much attention. Even tho I took a nap, I was still tired. So I slept really late today. *Now I am watching "Meet the Fockers", very funny. Earlier, we were watching "Posiden Adventure" (the newer version). Cool special effects, but the situations totally unreal. Golum has returned to his cave and and Dad is taking a nap. Mom and I are taking advantage of the ability to get on the internet via our laptops. Loki is out cold. Hehe, much better than her running around the house w/ the zoomies.
*Happy New Year to all!! May it bring you everything you wish and more!!*

Laptop & Loki updates

As I type I am sitting in my living room watching the end of "Paint Your Wagon". Yes, that's right, I finally can access the internet from my laptop. I got the laptop in the beginning of August, and it took me until December to get the wireless connection working. And I don't even need another internet port. In fact, we are going to try and return it. All we had to do was turn on a switch and type in a password. Lucky for me, my mommy did it for me so when I got up, my internet connection was in operation. So I am blogging for the first time on my laptop. Hehe, no more sitting at the dumb desktop complaining about the speed or lack thereof. My laptop is very fast and I love it. Now I can take it with me and access the internet at places that offer free connection like the St. Louis Bread Co.
* Loki is now 10 months old now and will be 11 months on January 8th. She is done w/ obedience lessons, she doesn't have an official piece of paper declaring her a graduate; but she is. She is very smart and did really well. She still acts like an idiot when ppl are over. Despite all of her training, she still acts like she has no manners when it comes to ppl. She is still very much a puppy, so it is forgivable. Labs in fact, don't really mature until they are about 3 years old. Shadow still acted like a puppy at times up until her last days.

Chrsitmas 2006

*Okay so Santa visited last night and left a nice loot of goodies behind. (apparently Santa thought I was a good girl this year ;)). Among the loot that I can claim as mine; boots (yay! finally some tall black boots!), a nice teal shirt, Hershey Kisses Fondue Set, Chocolate for the fondue set, Printmaster (program to create my own calenders, greeting cards, etc), a soothing neck wrap and face mask, a suit (which is going to be returned b/c its too tight on the shoulders and itchy), and a sign for my garden (very cute).
*I also recieved some lovely gifts on Wed from my friends when we met up at the Old Spaghetti Factory (yummy food by the way) for our annual Holiday Party: Very Sexy Lotion from Missy, Oklahoma! DVD & VS lip gloss from Jenny & Tom, Vanilla Bean Noel (my fave holiday scent from Bath & Body works) lotion from Liz, and a really neat candle set from Angie.
*So I braved the crowds yesterday to find some knee-high socks (I selected the boots myself, so I knew I was getting them and I knew I needed socks for them). The crowds weren't bad; just like any other Sunday. With the exception of it being Christmas Eve.
*Watched the movie Invincible- true story about Vince Papali a guy who got to play for the Eagles even tho he never played college football. Really good movie. Also watched a lot of episodes of Star Gate season 9 (Golum's present), Gremlins, and Fantastic Four. Christmas Day is great for doing nothing; all we have is opening gifts in the morning and then the family dinner at night. There's only four of us, so its a small informal deal, but very good food and important.
*T/m I will brave the crowds again, though not in the early morning. New York & Company is having a fabulous sale and I have a coupon for 15% off. There are two shirts I want and a suit(exchange for suit I got for Xmas). Going to NY & Co and that's it, maybe Best Buy or I just might send out Golum to get my stuff. Ah well, we'll see
* Merry Christmas to all and to all a Good Night!!

2006 in Review

This survey is about the year 2006. Answer the questions thinking about the past year. My answers are below:


1) Overall, have you had a good year? yea I guess so
2) What has been your biggest achievement? graduating from college
3) Did you take any exams, pass? last summer, and yes I passed
4) Have you been on a vacation (list where and when)? nope...summer school and no money
5) Have you bought anything expensive? a laptop computer- my first!!
6) Have you had a job? some little assigments from Kelly Temps
7)Made any big decisions? um, researching a puppy?
8) Lost a friend or loved one? yea, RIP Riley Hughes, and Shadow- beloved black lab
9)Met anyone amazing? uh...that'd be a no
10) Made new friends? yep
11) Moved house? nope
12) Changed College? nope, I'm all done now
13) Tried something new? obedience training a puppy
14) Been more happy or sad? happy
15) Made any enemies? not on purpose...
16) What music will you remember from this year? my introduction to Raggaeton (ty Amber) and "Hips don't lie" By Shakira, and "Buttons" by Pussycat Dolls, "Promiscous" by Nelly Furtado, and "Switch" by Will Smith
17) What movies have you seen at the cinema this year? um.... Superman Returns,
18) What was your best night out? Jenny and Tom's Wedding
19)What was your worst night out? hmmm....I don't know
20) Best day? gettting my puppy Loki
21) Worst day? when we had to put Shadow to sleep
22)Best month?May- I found out I was going to graduate in August!!
23)Worst month? Febuary
24)Was summer a gooden'? I was in class most of the time, but having Loki helped
25)Have you made better friends with anyone? yes
26) Lost any friends? yes...it makes me sad b/c it wasn't my fault
27) Made any plans for next year? not really, getting a job and perhaps going to Sectionals to help choose new Railroaders
28) How many hair colours have you had? just blonde
29)Got pierced? no
30) Got inked? never!
31) Changed your image? nope
32) Missed anyone? yes- my brothers!!
33) Know what you want in the future? yup
34)Regret anything? yes, everybody regrets something
35)Have you had any relationships this year? no but I've gone on dates
36) Been to church? for Jenny and Tom's Wedding
37)Cried yet? yeah....
38) Been on a diet? yes the doctors have put me on a few diets to make my tummy better
39) Pulled an all nighter? yep- good old 4 AM visits to the ER
40) Drank Starbucks? YUM
41) Went Camping? define camping
42) Bought something(s)? lots of things
43) Met someone special? everyone is special
44)Been out of state? yea
45)Gone Snowboarding? no.
46)Gotten in a car accident? nope not this year
47)Gone over your cell phone bill? nope!

Snow, Snow, and more Snow!!

As previously posted, we got about 5 or more inches of snow last night/this morning. The trees are covered in ice and look wonderful. Mom and I managed to get some great winter shots. My highlight is the awesome Cardinal picture I got! For a while now, I have been trying to get a great shot of a bright red Cardinal in a tree. A nice close up. Well, today I got it!! It is awesome! Here is the link to the winter pics.
*Loki and I went sledding and had an absolute blast. Granted, Loki didn't know what exactly was going on. The reason I went sledding is b/c our pile of wood that is protected by a tarp is at the bottom of the hill. So I decided to sled down the hill and bring the wood up in the sled.
*Loki is enjoying her first taste of snow! She loves to push her nose in it and sniff. She also likes to run in it!

St. Louis's worst Snow Storm!

That's what people all over are saying. That is snow storm is possibly the worst one in the city's history. When they first said that a system was headed our way, I was a bit doubtful. Then again, this is St. Louis. If something doesn't make sense, the answer is- that's St. Louis. The stystem came and hit us hard and fast. First the temp dropped 30 or more degrees, then the rain started. It dropped some more degrees, then the sleet came. All Wed night the sleet fell, until we had at least 2 inches of slush. Loki was thrilled. She had sooo much fun chasing her retriever in the slush. Before I went to bed, I saw lightning, and then I heard a big crack of thunder, and I got really excited b/c I thought we were going to get Thunder Snow! Thunder Snow has only hit St. Louis once, that was in the winter of '82- mom was pregnant w/ me and said that they got 24 inches!! Unfortunately, no thunder snow. We did get about 5 or more inches of snow. Not bad for our first snow storm. The trees are covered in ice. Several big branches are down. We got lucky, other areas were hit a lot harder. Kirkwood for one; they lost power lines, trees, and power. Lucky for us, we still have power and only lost it briefly. So we are quite toasty w/ a roaring fire going on all day. Columbia got Thunder Snow- and 16 inches of wonderful snow! Friday the roads were plowed and were better than Thursday afternoon/night.
* For those of you who think the snow will be gone by Sunday- think again. Beneath all of the snow, there is a layer of ice- a nice solid 2 inches layer of ice. There must have been 6 inches of ice on mine and my brothers car alone. This stuff is going to stick around for a while as we are in for some cooler temps all week. Sure everything might have melted in the sun today, and the roads were better. However, it is about 24 degrees outsitde right now and everything is freezing over again. Tonight we might hit single digit degrees! So stay inside and stay warm. If you venture out, drive w/ extreme caution and bundle up!