The Default Winner

Four years ago, I took up the game of golf. I only did it because I love my husband. I only did it because I did not want to become a golf widow. It turns out it was a great endeavor. You see, I instantly knew that my boyfriend who soon after became my husband was an avid golfer or in plain terms, a golf addict. I knew that if I ever wanted to see him and spend time with him, I would have to hit the course. Over the years, we have played together in several scrambles and because of my honey’s prowess on the course, we have managed to win. Upon moving to El Dorado, we joined the local country club and have been playing in the Tuesday night couples scramble organized by the Club.

Recently, my honey and I decided to ditch the gym in exchange for walking 9 holes every day after work. So, I was not at all surprised this past Tuesday when he proudly announced that he had registered me for a one Lady scramble. Immediately, I saw a montage of the Rocky training scenes. Then I was gripped by the thought that I was not ready. As the week progressed, I was encouraged. My confidence was boosted by the fact that we won the couples scramble this past Tuesday. On Friday night, I could not sleep. I tossed and turned worrying about the Michelle Wies and the Natalie Gublis that were waiting for me on the golf course on Saturday morning. I have to admit, I was freaking out!!!!!

Early Saturday morning (after a night of intense wine drinking), I stumbled out of the bed wishing I had the foresight to cancel on Friday afternoon. After a quick run to Shipley’s donuts ( breakfast of the champions), I was ready to ball (or drive) on my opponents. I was ready to play! I got dressed in my nice khakis and my husband’s official looking golf jacket (it was dreary and cold). I got to the golf course with my husband/caddy ready to dominate. Then I received the devastating (ahemm, awesome) news. Five contestants canceled and one individual was a no show. I am the only one who showed up! Really? Was it dedication or madness? I showed up and therefore was victorious over those who did not. I take my victories where I can find them, and I was particularly thankful for this one.

Can I truly and in good conscience count this as a win? Have you ever won by default or had similar experience?

A house divided: the end of Arkansas' love affair with Coach Petrino

The Razorback Nation will never be the same, it is a house divided! A whole week has gone by and the entire state of Arkansas is still a buzz about the firing of Coach Petrino. As the week progressed, more information was revealed about just how “inappropriate” the relationship between Coach Petrino and the young Ms. Jessica Dorrell was.  Prior to Jeff Long’s announcement that Coach Petrino was fired, Hog fans took to social media to speculate the Coach’s future. Many were disappointed with his behavior but were quick to forgive and forget. Scores of Hog fans took to social media to plead on behalf of the Coach Team save Coach Petrino Facebook page. Some even marched and formed Team save Petrino Rally hoping to convince administrators to retain the Coach. 

                                           
                                              Yes, we know how to spell in Arkansas

Check out this website to get  a different take on the situation. For the most part, many Hog fans love winners more than they hate cheaters. My husband even got de-friended on facebook because he expressed contrary views! 

Alas, it was not meant to be and Arkansas’ love affair with Coach Petrino came to an end. The Hogs are left without a Coach and as many speculate, without a championship in the horizon! Although I don’t condone philandering, for me it was a personnel issue. Jessica Dorrell who is currently on administrative leave, was the Coach’s subordinate. He had influence in her hiring out of 150 applicants, he supplied her with a $20,000.00 and he lied to his boss about the details of his motorcycle crash. If the school retained him, it would have set a bad precedent for employer- employee relationship and would have become a Human Resource nightmare for the school.

 The Coach’s life continues to be laid bare and paraded in the media. They have FOIA’d his phone records and discovered that he was also communicating with another woman. The extent of their communication has not been revealed, but apparently they exchanged numerous texts. For some, the reality and gravity of the situation sunk in when they saw the Coach’s multimillion dollar house on sale (take a virtual tour).

Just as the Razorback fans got over Houston Nutt, they will get over Coach Bobby Petrino. All fans can do is hope that our wonderful and dedicated players show the world that the Razorback spirit can’t be broken. I for one can’t wait for the game day excitement and my tragus itches to hear the sweet words, “LET’S CALL THOSE HOGS!”

Who do you think will lead the Razorbacks to victory?

Whiplash & Backlash: The Coach Bobby Petrino scandal and the Razorback outrage

When the world first heard about Bobby Petrino’s motorcycle accident, people all over the nation expressed their well wishes. Nobody expected to wake up a couple days later to have the rug pulled from under them. When my husband yanked open the shower door to tell me that Coach Petrino was involved in single vehicle motorcycle accident, it took a few explanations for me to understand. Now that new facts have emerged, lives are going to change. Some people are upset that the Coach has been put on administrative leave. But I think that is the best solution for everyone including the Coach, the team and the fans.

 Coach Petrino’s family will have to start the healing cycle. It does not bode well that he had to have an accident for the affair to come to light. His situation was not improved by the fact that he blatantly lied about the parties involved in the crash. One can only speculate what led to the recent events. Perhaps his spouse suspected an affair or maybe she was a dotting wife and did not know. Either way, they will have to decide where to go from here. It could tear them apart or it could test the very fabric of their relationship but leave their relationship in-tact. Coach Petrino will have to work on rebuilding trust with his family.

The administrative leave will allow team members and Hog fans come to terms with their disappointment. Coach Petrino is a highly regarded member of the society and has been looked upon favorably thus far. Young men of the community are entrusted to him by their hopeful parents as an example of what to aspire to be. Perhaps the notion that money and power make people in places of power more susceptible to cheat is true. Many can recall the very recent and public scandals of Tiger Woods, Strauss Kahn, Anthony Weiner and Arnold Schwarzenegger, just to name a few. I just worry about the message being sent to young men at this day and age.

What of the young lady Ms. Jessica Dorrell you ask? Well, from my understanding she was betrothed to be married on June 9^th. I hope for her sake and for her fiancé’s sake they at least postpone the wedding to get professional help. Yes, she is 25 and she made a bad choice by becoming involved with a married man who also turned out to be her boss. I imagine that staying in her current position will not be pleasant. Hopefully she can sort out this mess and move on.

The Hog nation is abuzz with news of Coach Petrino’s indiscretion. It is my hope that all the omitted details have emerged and nothing else will come out of the woodwork. I predict that by tomorrow Twitter, Facebook, ESPN and all the sports networks will be talking about this.

I think a hog fan on the radio said it best this afternoon, in regards to the Coach Bobby Petrino situation…”Go Hogs anyway!”

What are your thoughts on this?

http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-football/2012/4/6/2930666/bobby-petrino-suspended-arkansas-fans-reaction/in/2683816
http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-football/2012/4/6/2931427/bobby-petrino-911-call-audio-transcript/in/2683816

http://www.sbnation.com/ncaa-football/2012/4/6/2931025/bobby-petrino-scandal-police-captain-lance-king

http://www.cbssports.com/collegefootball/story/18348238/petrino-firing-offense-not-adultery-or-lie-but-putting-arkansas-at-risk

Intentional Success

“Plan tomorrow tonight. Don't just let the day happen to you - Success is intentional” – Shun Strickland

As soon as those words came across my computer screen, I felt a deep case of déjà vu. I have often muttered the same words after a grueling race to accomplish an impossible task. Mind you, the same task would have been possible with enough preparation, but due to procrastination, I am often left scrambling. Ok, so I already have a clear understanding of the essence of what the message was telling me. Proper planning, efficiency, and success walk hand in hand. Those same attributes are what I strive for. Intentional success is something that I have desired for years. I have practiced it on several occasions and it has worked wonderfully. 

So why have I become known as the queen of procrastination you ask? Well, it is something that I just kind of fell into, just like many things in my life. As a young teenager, I remember my older sister admonishing me by using the adage “poor planning leads to poor performance which yields poor results.” At the time, her words were met with fierce eye rolls. Deep inside, I knew she was right. I used to thrive and survive on the adrenaline of last minute cramming or worse, last minute research paper writing. Over the years, I convinced myself that I did my best work under pressure. I got away with it in undergraduate school work, but it came back to haunt me in Law School. In my adult years, intentional success is what I desire and procrastination is something that I now want to nip in the bud. They say “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks,” but I believe that there is always an exception to every rule. As a young professional, I want to be the best at what I do. I want to be so far ahead of the game that nobody can ever accuse me of slacking.

How will I accomplish my goal of intentional success? Well, there are a lot of factors that have to come together in perfect celestial harmony (perhaps I am being a tad bit over dramatic.)

The said factors are:
1. Taking a personal inventory of my current situation
2. Setting goals and commitments
3. Developing mechanisms to abandon the need for external affirmation
4. Forced repetition
5. Doing proper research and self evaluation when I do not achieve the desired results
6. Engaging in activities that interest me
7. Developing a support system
8. Repeating steps 1-7 until it becomes a way of life

I have set these rules for myself. In the following days I will post several blog entries containing a brief breakdown of how I arrived at the aforementioned 7 rules. I will explore each of them in separate posts. In developing the rules, I realized that I needed a short and sweet view of what I needed to work on. Having a long list of goals would only serve to confuse me. I thought long and hard about what I need to change at this point in my life to be able to achieve intentional success. These rules do not apply to everyone, as we are all different. These rules were developed after a personal inventory of my strengths and weaknesses.

Are you on a personal quest for Intentional Success or have you achieved Intentional Success? If so, how did you do it and what were your experiences? Feel free to share your ideas.   

Summer Weight loss

Bathing suit weather is fast approaching and I long to lounge by the pool and wile away the dog days of summer. In the past few months, I have packed on the pounds and I have become a bit apprehensive about appearing in the public clad in small pieces of fabric. My Bestie, who recently had a baby, and I have decided to lose weight together. I figure that having a support network would not hurt. So now you are probably wondering, what’s next? I want to keep my plan simple and my goals realistic. My husband and I have been walking and playing nine holes at the El Dorado Country Club and golf course every day after work, and I would like to continue that. It has given us a chance to enjoy each other’s company while I benefit from his tutelage. I will not be Michelle Wie by the end of the summer, but a girl can dream. I want to add two days of 30 minutes of cardio and weightlifting to what I am currently doing. I will do three sets of 15 push-ups every morning.

My main challenge lies in limiting my portions at meal times and eating less carbohydrates (oh potatoes and pastas, this will be the last time you entice me). I will strive to drink a lot of water everyday. Albeit sad, my love affair with food has to end sometime, and there is no time like the present.

 My goal is to lose about 15 pounds in two months. To some this does not sound like a great feat. But let me remind you, I am the girl who refused to lose weight for her wedding. Not that I did not want to, truth be told, I had the desire, but not the will. So to me, 15 might as well be 100.   

I was told that Rome was not built in one day and I hope that by making these minor adjustments, I could see enough results to make more drastic lifestyle changes. I am certainly not dying to be thin, but I would like to be comfortable. Going forth, let the loosing begin!

Do you have any summer weight loss goals? If so, what are they?