1/27/09  -  posted by Hogers at 12:57 PM  -  0 Comments

Reports are out that David Beckham may be leaving LA for Italy. Beckham is currently on loan from the LA Galaxy to AC Milan, an Italian soccer league powerhouse.


Beckham had made this temporary move so that he could convince the England national team coach that he could still play at the international level. It has been suggested that Beckham's spice-girl wife Victoria does not want to move to Italy and wants to stay in LA.  More...

1/26/09  -  posted by Hogers at 1:47 PM  -  0 Comments

CBS's 60 Minutes ran a great piece on the closing of the DHL sorting hub facility in Wilmington, Ohio.


It's pretty sad to see the impact of the recession on common everyday folk. I've been working on project for DHL for the past seven months, and it's scary time for people who are about to lose their jobs.

From what I've heard, the DHL employees are pretty upset that the German-owned DHL parent company purchased Airborne Express several years ago, and just ran it into the ground due to gross mismanagement.

1/21/09  -  posted by Hogers at 2:35 PM  -  0 Comments

Opponents of a proposed statewide tax on golf fees announced Friday that they have launched a Web site, ForeCalifornia.com, to further their message and mobilize efforts.

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in November proposed a tax on golf fees as part of a three-year increase in the state sales tax designed to ease the state deficit.


The state's sales tax would increase by 1.5 cents on the dollar. It would be broadened to sales and use taxes on items such as car repair, golf and veterinary services, a tax on oil extraction in the state, and an increase in alcohol taxes. More...

Help stop the tax by registering with the California Alliance for golf HERE.

1/19/09  -  posted by Hogers at 3:43 PM  -  2 Comments

Voting has closed for the IkeaHacker's blog 2008 Ikea Hack of the Year. I didn't win, but I'm mildly surprised that I was able to take down a 5th place finish.

1/14/09  -  posted by Hogers at 3:17 PM  -  2 Comments

Because I can shoot a 108 on any given day. Below is my score from a round at Empire Lakes last week. Before I go into details, I have to give a shout out to my boy Kevin Na who we see on the Empire Lakes driving range every time we play there. I don't actually know him...in fact, I hate him because he has a silky swing and I don't.


Ok, first off, I just want to say that last weekend's round was EXTREMELY windy. There were 50 mph gusts blowing the entire round. Secondly, I just want to point out the 14 on the scorecard below (11th hole). That's nine over. NINE. And the funny thing is that the wind had no effect on this hole. I was actually happy that I got into a greenside bunker in three strokes on this long 576 yard par-5. From there it was a disaster...

4.) Blast bunker shot 60 yards over green
5.) Chunk flop shot
6.) Chunk second flop into weeds
7.) Drop
8.) Pitch over green back to the front under a bush
9.) Drop
10.) Pitch ball into bunker
11.) Bunker shot onto green
12.) Putt
13.) Putt
14.) Putt

That, my friend, is the anatomy of a 9-over on a single hole. My previous personal best on a single hole was an 8-over on a par-3 during the Long Beach City Championships. That was actually more embarrassing because I was playing with really good players.

1/8/09  -  posted by Hogers at 12:48 PM  -  0 Comments

Check it out...the first paragraph of this story posted on CNN.com today says it all.


GAZA CITY, Gaza (CNN) -- Israeli forces fired on a U.N. aid convoy Thursday in Gaza, killing two aid workers, during a three-hour truce that Israel set up to allow humanitarian aid to reach civilians, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said.

More...

Maybe the Israeli forces were getting bored and wanted some target practice with the aid workers?

1/6/09  -  posted by Hogers at 1:47 PM  -  1 Comments

How did I spend my two weeks of holidays at home? By building my side porch and trellis in the lukewarm SoCal sun. This was a big project in the making that took almost 1.5 years to complete. Before I begin, let me give a big thank you to Goo (Sam) for helping out.

Sept 2007 - Demolition of Side Porch
Here is a picture of the old porch when we first moved into the house. The railing and overhead trellis were badly dry rotted (termites). Demolition consisted of lightly kicking at the railing and having it fall over into the yard.



Oct 2007 to Oct 2008 - Procrastination
Threw up some pieces of plywood to block the entrance to the side porch after a crazy lady wandered up onto the porch and started looking inside.



Nov 2008 - Design and Prep
With the holidays approaching, a new fire burns inside to get this puppy built. Go to Home Depot, buy some wood, screws, brackets and stain.


I start enlisting the support of anybody that stops by the house. The other (Juanne's) Eugene gets busy sanding down the boards. He wasn't too happy that I found the power sander an hour after he had already sanded by hand with sand paper.



Dec 2008 - Arrival of the Home Improvement Master
Just like Santa Claus traveling the world to distribute gifts, Goo arrives in town to apply his free home improvement skills to our house.


After the "ladder incident" over the summer, I eagerly allow Goo to get up on the ladder to do all of the work.




Jan 2009 - The Finished Product
BEFORE:


AFTER:

 -  posted by Hogers at 10:02 AM  -  0 Comments

With the current news of the ongoing battle between Israel and Hamas, I couldn't help but to think how Israel is basically involved in a campaign to wipe out the Palestinians.


The latest atrocities from today's news involves Israeli forces purposely firing at a U.N. school in Gaza, killing at least 30. CNN and other news wires are reporting that "Hamas militants fired from the school first"...therefore, the Israelis returned fire. But that's bullshit. I hate the fact that US news publications are skewed by the Jews here in the states.

I've never had much of an opinion about Israeli/Arab tensions...but recent events are really helping me to sympathize for the Palestinians in Gaza.