Car dealerships sometimes sponsor car giveaways to promote their dealerships. They set the competition in such a difficult manner that it’s nearly impossible to win. In this case, they allow a broke college student to putt a golf ball from 94 feet into a tiny hole in a cardboard box that is just slightly bigger than a golf ball. The …
“It’s Hard to Fail When You’re Giving Bikes to Kids”
When I was a child growing up in the 1980s, my bike was an important part of my life. My favorite bike was a Predator Cromo, a dirt bike that I received for Christmas one year. This bike represented fun – we were always racing bikes, riding “wheelies” and creating jumps. This bike represented freedom – I rode it everywhere. …
Perspective: How Would You Live this Day Over?
Perspective. We mostly go through our daily lives by going through the motions. One day leads to the next. Alarm, breakfast, school, lunch, more school, practice, homework, dinner, TV, bedtime. Something like that. Most days are not special or memorable. For example, can you remember what you did on November 7th of last year? Me neither. This simple 1-minute video …
Three Simple Rules of Life
Stephen Hawking once said, “Showing up is half the battle.” This quote always stuck with me. It’s so simple that sometimes we forget the importance of the statement. You can’t be considered for the job if you don’t submit your resume. You can’t win the race if you are not entered. You can’t win the lottery if you don’t buy …
High School Coach Goes All the Way to Supreme Court to Pray After Game
Joe Kennedy was an assistant football coach at Bremerton High School in Washington. After football games ended, he customarily kneeled on the turf and said a prayer. Some players would join him in his prayer and kneel with him. In 2015, the Bremerton School Board asked him to refrain from any demonstrative on-field prayer. Officials said they were concerned that …
Intangibles Are More Important than Star Ratings
Earlier this season, unrated Duke played highly-rated Clemson. All the experts predicted another big win for Clemson. After all, they have 39 5-star recruits on their roster and Duke only has 2 on their roster. A total mismatch on paper. HOWEVER, the outcome of that game was Duke 28-Clemson 7. Joe’s Perspective: This result shouldn’t be a shocker. Upsets happen …
“He Does Not Deserve a Death Threat”
During the Colorado vs. Colorado State football game, Henry Blackburn (CSU) delivered a late hit on Travis Hunter (Colorado). CSU was flagged for unnecessary roughness and Travis Hunter was injured on the play. This kind of play happens quite often in football. A defensive player runs hard to deliver a hit on an offensive player. Sometimes the defensive player gets …
Sportsmanship on Display at X-Country Meet
At a cross-country meet in Wisconsin earlier this season, something unusual happened. With about a half-mile left in the race, Seppi Camilli, a runner from Marquette (MI) High School, made a bold move and broke free from several competitors from Stevens Point High School. With just the ‘straight-away’ left, he found himself alone in second place. However, with about 15 …
The Reciprocity Effect
Rehan Staton is a 27-year-old Harvard Law School graduate. However, his path to that degree was not typical. As a child, his mother abandoned the family and his dad struggled with gainful employment. In other words, Rehan grew up poor. To make it, he worked as a sanitation worker (that’s trash man to you and me). His grades were never …
College Athlete Donates his Scholarship to his Teammate
Zack Conti is a senior offensive lineman for Eastern Michigan University. When he arrived on campus four years ago, he was a “walk-on,” which meant that he received no reduction in his fees to attend school. To pay for his tuition, he has always worked. He works a lot of construction jobs. He also has had to donate his plasma …