Ahhh…Opening Day

My NY Islanders season has 3 games left and no playoffs this year which means only one thing, baseball starts on time this year! My NY Mets started right with Johann Santana leading the way to a 6-2 win over the crappy Marlins. Even if you don’t watch or like baseball, you gotta appreciate what it represents, aside from the juiced players. Spring has arrived, cookouts, hot dogs, peanuts, popcorn, ice cold beer, overpaid adult men under-appreciating the fact they work in glorious parks every single day lying to federal grand juries. Make sure you turn on ESPN Sunday Night Baseball at least once this year, it gets no better than Morgan & Miller calling a game. If your fortunate to live in a baseball town, especially minor leagues, make sure you spend a day at the park. It’s more fun in person and you get to make fun of the drunk people who paid $6 per beer! Schmorons…

Let’s Go Mets!

PS - Avoid my wife’s blog unless you wanna see the sexy side of Hockeyman. Yes ladies, that’s the real deal. I also use Axe and commercials don’t lie. Please try to contain and restrain yourself. It’s ok, I’m used to it.

Is it Sunday already?

Sometimes I really hate Sunday evenings. They are worse than Mondays I think. However, I must complete my first full week of blogging. Today found us at a 4 year old birthday party and then oodles of fun at our own house hosting a sort of Wrestlemania party. We did not watch the event, but 2 of the 3 guests to our house had spouses/S.O.’s at the event here in Orlando. I know for sure we had more fun drinking some good wine, a few beers, grilling hot dogs and watching our kids all play together. We watched Big Brother, a little baseball, a little college basketball, and all of our sides hurt from laughing at our entertaining children. I wouldn’t want it any other way. My wife’s friends have become my friends and are like sisters to me. The kid in me wanted to go to Wrestlemania, but there will never be another event such as Hulk Hogan body-slamming Andre the Giant as I saw when I was 11 and into the whole wrestling TV drama.

What really sucks is tomorrow I have to go back to work. I like my job and enjoy what I have to do all day, but I much prefer playing with my girls all day. I am thankful I am able to support my wife and her stay at home lifestyle and business but sometimes I really wish the shoe was on the other foot.  I get stressed around them just as much as she does, but I want to have that stress every day. I know there isn’t much time before our girls don’t want to spend every minute with us any more in lieu of their friends. I never want to be as lame as I felt my parents were when I got to a certain age, but I know that will be more difficult than anything else we will tackle.

Before you think that party I mentioned earlier was had to do,  it was one of my oldest friends from my college hockey days daughter. Funny enough, we had all gone our separate ways after college and somehow came back together about 4 years ago at the ice hockey rink. While chatting it up before a game and talking about old times, we realized we all had pregnant wives at home. Each of us had our kids 3 months apart between each kid. Oddly enough, they were all girls. Since about the 4 month age of my daughter, the youngest in the group, we have roughly maintained a play group with all of them. Some of the pictures we have are priceless and if they remain friends through adolescence and adulthood, they will appreciate these pictures more than they could imagine. Seriously, how cool would it be if you had pictures of you with your closest friends from your first halloween through your entire life?

Ok, back to the grind…gots bills to pay.

Water Park

So today the hockey family ventured out to Sea World’s newest venture, Aquatica. We got to enjoy the place for about 2 hours after waiting what felt like 3 hours to collect our free passes to get in. It is a cool place with great fun looking slides and experiences, but the little ones just were not happy. We dunno if it was all the crowd or the fact that mom and dad took them to the pre-teen play area before we found the little kiddos area. Regardless, we will go back as it was a really cool place.

What generated most of the discussion afterwards was the people watching.  Let me say I love bikinis and ladies who look nice in them. I can even appreciate the usual dates with them that can clearly walk around with no shirt on. In total today we saw about 8 of said people. The rest were, um, disturbing. I can accept a little extra cushion here and there as I have some myslef. But I am not squeezing into something I wore when I was 16. My suit was not clinging to life or hiding under my body by Budweiser, it fit correctly. People please remember, a Speedo is never accepted in public unless it’s the Olympics or you have your Olympic medal hanging from your neck. Even then, if you are not in Olympic shape, leave it home. No one wants to see that and as guys know, swimming in a pool is never flattering.

Free passes, thanks sis in law, will always bring me back to the place and I just hope next time we bring a camera so we can share the many visual highlights we saw. To those hot looking bikini clad college age girls drinking the beers, next time you see my cute little girl and you want to squeeze her cute little face….go ahead, but after that it’s my turn! Mrs Hockeyman may want a turn as well.

The Meaning of Life

It’s not 42.

Tonight I sent out Mrs. Hockeyman to join some of her blog friends for dinner and drinks and a good time out alone. To make the most of my night of solo parenting I planned everything just right. We had breakfast for dinner consisting of mini pancakes and Barbie waffles. Kids love em’. After that we had some killer dad made ice cream sundaes with all the trimmings you could ask for. Magic shell, M&M’s, gummy bears, sprinkles and a cherry. Then we played about 5 games of go fish and Uno before getting the girls in their PJ’s for a nightcap of the Bee Movie on the couch. Little trouble didn’t last but 15 minutes on the couch but the older boss made it through. We watched some DVD special features and 10 minutes later, you have the picture below. Maybe now I’ll get to the dishes although the Wii is calling my name! Sorry honny, I’ll do them in the morning….tonight has just been too perfect!

Indirect P.S.A.

Favorite informational T-Shirt of the day…

TV Guilty Pleasures

What would TV be without guilty pleasures. You know, those shows you love to watch and sometimes hate to admit to your friends that you watch it. Kids shows don’t count unless you watch them alone or after 9PM. If you do, I imagine I may see you in my number 3 someday. Seriously, they do make stuff for adults. Weirdo…

1. Jackass - dunno why, but I never stop laughing at these idiots
2. Top Chef - These cooks are amazing…but still “reality” TV
3. Lock-up on MSNBC - Makes me feel better about my life
4.  Hell’s Kitchen - Gordon kicks ass!
5. *sigh* Big Brother - Truly the ultimate evil of television, but why can’t I turn it off? DAMMIT!

Ok folks, what are your top 5 guilty pleasures of crap TV? Remember, you would be generally be embarrassed to admit you watch…

Hockey Night in Orlando & Squibs

It’s hockey night for hockeyman but I had to share a new creature my 3 year old created. They’re called Squibs. They’re rond, soft and come in dark colors. You can’t see them because they live under the dirt. They survive on coffee and jellybeans, but they have no mouths, ears, noses, hands, or feet. They eat through a hole in their head. They don’t go to work, they only go to other squib houses. See below for pictures, and perhaps my Mrs. Hockeyman will share links to the video we took later.

You should be more funny…

My wife, Mrs. HockeyMan, says I should be more funny on my blog. Aside from testing out new stand-up material, perhaps I can share some stories that I found humorous in my daily life. Maybe then I will be granted the luxury of getting a link to my blog on her blog. I guess 10 years of constant marital servitude isn’t enough to get a link. I am a code jockey, computer nerd, techno dork by day so there isn’t a whole lot of excitement pulsating in the loser cruiser(cubicle)I call home for 8-10 hours a day, but I’ll give it the old college try. This may not amount to much as I didn’t fare so well in college and actually wish I saved my letter I once got telling me I couldn’t come back. Ironically enough my major was Management of Information Systems and my current job title is now Information Systems Manager and I oversee a team of 5 developers. Go figure…

So throngs of audience members, currently 1, prepare for the humor that brews inside my warped demented brain. To emphasize the dementia, I once gave a portrait of myself in a picture frame as a secret santa Christmas gift. Last I heard, this portrait still holds a prominent location in my wife’s friend’s home. I have a few ideas cooing for next year, hopefully I remember some of them come December.

What a Lunatic

As a goalie in ice hockey myself, yes we have ice in Florida, I found this to be a disgusting act that degrades the beauty of the game. Hockey fights can be poetic and most often justifiable, but this is awful. Obviously the prick gene was passed down and like father like son has been displayed in the worst way. Link

Perhaps they can get matching tats like these fine upstanding citizens…
Picture Link

Quick Shifts

My wife says I should post more to my blog, so I will try to find stuff to blog about for her to read. If anyone else is out there, please leave a simple hello comment so I know there is an audience and motivation to continue to write more.

Family Stuff
Recently my grandmother passed away. This was very sad for me as she was very integral to my childhood and I was close to her. She helped to raise my sister and I and we spent nearly every Saturday at her house in her backyard at the pool. Pure bliss. She was 90 years old and as healthy as anyone until her body just stopped. The hardest part for me was my last time with her at her hospital bedside just 2 days before she died. What made these moments so hard was knowing these would be my final moments with her. I got to sit and sort of chat with her as I held her hand which she never let go of and maintained a tight grip even as she went in and out of cat naps. I remember staring at the clock wishing it would slow down as I fought back the tears so she could not see them. I will never forget giving her a hug, telling her to be strong, that I loved her, kissing her forehead, and walking away knowing that was the last time I would ever see her again. It was the last time I wept as in my family, wakes and funerals are an excuse to drink lots of beer mixed with occasional shots. We are Irish and made the most of the reason to all be together. She would have liked that.

My Girls
Nothing brings me more peace and frustration in my life than being with my girls. Watching a hockey game with them after they have fetched me a cold beer from the fridge is the perfect evening. When they cheer or identify the hockey team being my NY Islanders, life couldn’t be better. Every day I am amazed at how quickly they learn and adapt at just 2 and 3 years old and I wonder if I was just as amazing to my parents. I’m sure I was, but it’s more fun to see it on this end. Although I don’t update them nearly as much as I should, I recommend to all parents (future or current), I maintain a notebook for each girl that I occasionally write letters to them in. My feeling is when they are older and matured and starting their adult lives as mine is ending they will be able to read these letters and hopefully appreciate my experiences raising them. My Dad and his Dad were writers and I get great enjoyment reading the tales from their youth.It’s kind of fun to do and in 5 years and on you might find you enjoy reading your own words to remind you of certain special moments.

NY Islanders
No playoffs for my team this year in the NHL. This is mostly due to the injury bug which has claimed 11 of the 20 rostered players so the team is currently now more their minor league affiliate than any other. A double edged sword for me as although there will be no glory, there will also be no stress from watching the playoff games themselves. At least I still play hockey year round, but it’s more fun during hockey season. Although concussions are never fun and I think I got one last game as I took a direct shot right in the kisser (I am a goalie) but I made the save so only the bell sound and slightly dizzy headache lasted. If the puck went in, it would have hurt worse but we came back and won.

NY Mets
New season, final one at Shea Stadium, begins in a week. Excitement and expectations are the highest for my team and I hope to find some way of watching as many games as I can. Let’s Go Mets!!!!

Rediscovery
Being the music lover I am, one of my favorite activities is rediscovering artists and tracks on albums. Today I rediscovered Damien Rice and his last record 9. The song Elephant in particular grabbed me and I found new deep enjoyment listening to it. His music is pure heart and soul and I wish the damn guy would come within 2 hours of Orlando so I can see him play live. To me there is nothing better than listening to a song you have heard several times before but are hearing it for the first time. Whether it’s a lyric that grabs you in a new way or a subtle background melody that you never noticed before, it is a wonderful sensation to me.

Vegas
I just completed booking a work conference trip to Las Vegas. I am excited as I will get to see Love as part of the conference and I booked a ticket to see Spam-A-Lot because I have to push the pram a lot and my mother smells of elderberries. Ahhhh….I just farted in your general direction.  I do feel a bit guilty as my wife cannot join me and hopefully the guilt will not prevent me from trying to enjoy my time there. I will be alone and if you’ve ever travelled alone for work you will know it can be the most depressing time of your life. If your not working, your in a hotel room scanning the 13 channels they give you on TV. It is Vegas so the entertainment mecca of the world will be below me, but how much fun can you have when something that may make you smile also reminds you no one cares as you turn to find a friendly reassuring smile from someone you know. Hopefully I will not lose my kids inheritance, the family car, or catch any diseases from the porno flyer pushers on the street. Why do they wear masks?

Again, if I have an audience let me know with a simple “hey” and I’ll make better efforts to post. Thanks for spending some time in my head. Unless you’re gonna pay I think it’s time for you to go.