For the Love of the Game ...

I think this article speaks for itself ...

Athletic Bilbao forward Joseba Etxeberria has signed a one-year contract extension that will see him play the final season of his career for free. The 31-year-old forward refused to accept a salary for the 2009-10 season as a gesture of good will and to ensure that he will retire with the same team that he has played for since 1995.

Club President Fernando García Macua referred to the new contract as a "unique case in the world of football", although Exteberria preferred to downplay the new deal.

"I wanted to do this gesture but never, in any moment, did I want to set a precedent," said Etxeberria, who hopes to reach 500 games played when he retires after a 15-year career at San Mames. "It's an idea I've had for years."

Etxeberria, known to Athletic fans as "El Gallo" (The Rooster) because of his on-field aggressiveness, will retire from football as one of the Basque side's greatest players. Etxberria signed with Bilbao at the age of 17. He has gone on to play in 416 games and scored 87 goals for Athletic. He also has 53 caps and scored 12 goals for the Spanish national team.

Etxeberria's unique gesture is a sign of loyalty towards his team. Long a symbol of Basque pride, Athletic Bilbao has stayed in Spain's Liga Primera for more than 80 years, fielding players exclusively from the Basque region in Spain and France. While other teams in La Liga fill their rosters with top talent from around the world, Athletic has managed to stay relatively competitive using local players. While some see their "locals only" policy as antiquated, it has also earned them a tremdous amount of loyalty from Bilbao fans, not to mention players like Etxeberria.
Source: iht.com

David's Song

Our friend, David Whitley, is working out the details on his new contract for Columbia. While he was in California he sang at the Dream Center http://www.angelustemple.org/ in California. This church ministers to people from all walks of life from the CEO to the homeless. David said their response to his song was overwhelming and he asked me to post it on YouTube. Enjoy!

Paragliding Adventure 2008

Here's a video I posted on YouTube with pictures and video from our paragliding adventure in Interlaken, Switzerland a couple of weeks ago.

5 Things We Hate About Freddy

we hate it when you're happy

laughing all the time

we hate it that you are so smart

translating every line

we hate it that you're pretty

a smile upon your face

we hate that you're so faithful

living out God's grace

But now that you are leaving

our heart just feels depressed

because we REA LLY love you

and think that you're the best

I Hate Flower Bags: Or Why I'm Pretty Sure Women Will One Day Rule The World

In one of my favorite books ,The Princess Bride by William Goldman, he begins by giving an account of how Buttercup becomes the most beautiful woman in the world. Apparently before Buttercup, a maid in some king's court held this "cherished" title. Of course, this didn't escape the jealous eye of the queen. In order to rectify this problem (and allow her husband to rule without distraction) she played interior decorator by leaving bowls of bonbons throughout the castle. Twenty pounds later the queen had solved her "problem" and Buttercup was one step closer to Miss Universe.

It seems, I've recently discovered, that such deviousness is not just wasted on taking out other women who may be stumbling blocks to their sinking self-esteem. Take my wife for example. We recently got a new laptop. It's fast. It's shiny. It would probably mow the grass if we had any (and if we put it down long enough for it to work its magic). So what does Kelly do? She puts in a green and brown flowered computer bag. To say this bag is ugly would be an injustice to the word ugly. I had no idea such hideousness existed outside of west Texas but I guess I was wrong.

Now I became quite depressed (which I was prone to already) when she simply replied to my apparent distaste by saying, "well . . . I like it." I like it? How am I supposed to respond to this in my fragile condition. After all, it takes great courage for me to have this bag sitting on the floor of my living room . . . much less be seen with it in public. What if she needs me to carry it?

But then the light came on. She doesn't want me to carry it!!!! The fact is she wants it all to herself. So the utilitarian purpose of the "bag from hell" is not to carry said computer from point a to point b, or even to be "pretty." A true cynic would even conclude she probably hates it herself. Instead the bags are designed (and probably marketed) as men repellers. And I can testify as to their effectiveness. I am convince my beautiful computer is infected with ugly bag cooties.

So what chance do we men have against such deviousness? Not much, by my estimation. We've been fooled into complacency when CNN reports there's only 14 world leaders who are women. Merkel seems harmless enough. Then one day. BAMMM!!! Flower bags for everyone. Men just don't have that kind of patience. It seems Star Wars would have been much more believable if Palpatine had been an empress.