Suns Fire General Manager Lance Blanks

Blanks

On April 22nd 2013 it was announced that Lance Blanks, the Phoenix Suns General Manager would part ways with the organization after a few rough years under his leadership. Lance Blanks, like his name he is blank of good ideas. The Suns are coming off a year that saw them have their worst record since they were an expansion team in 1968-69 where they went 16-66, which is expected from an expansion team. This year they finished with an appalling record of 25-57, and finished dead last in the Western Conference. Many Suns fans, including myself, are obviously up in arms about this situation and want to see a return to the glory days of Charles Barkley, or more recently, Steve Nash. The front office of the Phoenix Suns has come under fire the past few years for making horrible decisions regarding the building of the team, and the cheapskate attitude that they have presented. The owner Robert Sarver is public enemy number one in Suns fans eyes right now. He has single handed turned this once great basketball organization into a sham, and many Suns fans are pleading with him to sell the team, and most would like to see the return of long time owner Jerry Colangelo.  Some of the Suns greatest seasons saw Jerry as the owner, and his son Bryan as the General Manager. Bryan Colangelo was the man who brought Steve Nash back, and seamlessly built a team that could compete for championships every year. Although this team never did win, it wasn't always our fault. Through rotten luck, and crooked referees, the Suns were never quite able to get over the championship hump.

Sarver

In the 04-05 season, which was Nash's first as the Suns star point guard, we saw a resurgence of run and gun basketball that was exciting and put the fans in the stands. The 8 seasons that Steve Nash played with the Suns were some of the best seasons the Suns organization has ever seen, and to go from this sort of play to the boring, uncoordinated play of the past few seasons has been hard to watch. Lance Blanks is most definitely at the forefront of these problems as he was the one who signed players who had no potential, and drafted players who were busts. He even traded our draft picks a few times simply for money, which for any basketball organization to do is a complete embarrassment. The picks that we've traded in recent years have resulted in players such as Rajon Rondo, Luol Deng, and Rudy Fernandez. These three players would have been benchmarks to our franchise, and could have helped us get over the championship hump, but instead we traded them for cash, or less talented players. We also have a knack for drafting less talented siblings. In 2008 we drafted Robin Lopez, a 7 foot center out of Stanford, who was always known for being in the shadow of his much more talented brother Brook, who was taken by the Nets earlier in the draft. Another example of this is when we drafted Taylor Griffin, who is Blake Griffin's less athletic and more bench warming brother.

Charles Barkley (rumored to be possible GM candidiate)

As a Suns fan I have to say I was ecstatic that Lance Blanks was finally fired. He has done nothing but make bad decisions since he became GM in 2010, and the records show that he has brought this team down to a very sub par level. Just about the only thing he did that made Suns fans happy was to bring Goran Dragic back to Phoenix after trading him away stupidly a few years prior. I'm not sure who should be the next GM, but I know he will do a better job than Blanks ever did. I think even I could do a better job than he did. It's very difficult to be a Suns fan right now, but I think if we are patient and use our draft picks wisely, we can be on top again someday and hopefully win our first championship sometime soon. The Suns are the most winning franchise in the NBA that do not have a championship banner hanging in their rafters. I would like to see our new GM change this. He or she has to come in with a mind set that it's going to be hard work and will take a few years, but if we are patient and make the right moves we will get there someday.

Chase Field: A Great Place to Relax or Go Crazy

Ever since the Diamondbacks were founded in 1998, I have been a huge fan of not only the team, but the stadium itself. I remember the first game I went to so vividly. I had been to Suns games and I always thought, as a small child, that it was such a huge place. Compared to Chase Field, US Airways Center, where the Suns play, is a minuscule place. Chase Field dwarfs it in many ways, and the first time I laid eyes on it I was amazed. Of course back in 1998 it was called Bank One Ballpark, or just, "The BOB," for short, and was changed to Chase Field in 2006. Walking up to the ballpark I was so excited to watch my first professional baseball game, which was strange because I didn't particularly like baseball that much up until Arizona was given a franchise. It is known as a hitter's ballpark, and it is never short of home runs each season. This makes the games a lot more exciting, but can also be detrimental to our own pitchers who try their best to keep the ball in the park. The mood in the ballpark before the game is always so electric, the sound of the crack of the bat as the players take BP, and the cheers from the crowd as a fan makes a nice catch in the outfield bleachers. The smell of the food in the ballpark is mesmerizing to the nostrils. It makes you want to sample everything they've got. The humongous screen in center field shows you all the stats from around the league and when you see them you want to start talking baseball with another enthusiast.

Chase Field (BOB) In Construction

Gonzo Celebrating After Game Winning Hit

We played the San Fran Giants, and I remember sitting in the upper deck. We did win the game, and if my memory is as good as I think it is, Barry Bonds homered that game. Ever since that game I have been hooked on baseball. Nothing quite rivals going to the ballpark for me, and I cherish every opportunity I get to spectate. I can only think of two or three times when I've gone to a game and they have lost. I'm pretty sure I am good luck in some ways. I have had the pleasure of watching both Randy Johnson, and Curt Schilling pitch back in the glory days of Dback's baseball. I always say if there is one moment I could time travel back to, I would travel to Game 7 of the 2001 World Series, and I would take the best seat in the house. Right above the Yankees dugout to watch Luis Gonzalez celebrate down the first base line, and see Jay Bell run into Matt Williams arms at home plate as my favorite team hoisted there first trophy. I would also have the call from Greg Schulte, the Dbacks' radio broadcaster in my ear. "A little blooper!! BASE HIT!!! DIAMONDBACKS WIN!!! THEY"RE THE WORLD CHAMPIONS!!!" I get goosebumps just thinking about it.

More Celebration

In more recent years, I still attend games in my free time to revisit the majesty of the mammoth ball park I know and love. In 2011, the Dbacks were National League West Champs, and Kyle Schuster and I went to games 3 and 4 of the series. We didn't get home field advantage over the Brewers, so we had to play two out of three in Milwaukee. Games 3 and 4 were by far the most exciting games I have ever attended. It's amazing how much more exciting playoff baseball can be. A highlight for me was when Paul Goldschmidt cranked a grand slam in Game 3 to give us a sizable lead to work with. Every fan in the park knew he was going to hit it, and when he did the roof nearly collapsed with all the cheers. I remember jumping up and down and high-fiving everyone around me. These are the good times that Chase Field and the Dbacks have given me and I will never forget them. Hopefully I can get to many more games in the future to support the team I have grown up with and loved.

Chase Field from Home Plate

Nicolas Winding Refn's Drive

The film Drive fits into the current discussion of secrets in class by displaying the duality of the driver character. In the beginning it seems as though he is just a normal guy who happens to be a very talented driver, and as such uses that ability to his advantage to make money through aiding criminals in their getaways. It isn't until towards the middle of the film that you begin to see his other side come out. This particularly happens because of his attachment to Irene and Benicio, and the fact that he's never felt that way about anybody before. The fact that it gets taken away from him slowly drives him to become more violent, even though most of the time the violence was warranted.

Coolest Movie Poster Ever

The one scene and line I love so much is when Driver is watching TV with Benicio, and he asks him if the shark on the show is a bad guy. Benicio of course responds with yes, and Driver then asks him if there are any good sharks. Benicio responds, "I mean just look at him; does he look like a good guy to you?" This line is so memorable for me because it creates innocence in Driver's situation, and the shark is a metaphor not only for Bernie and Nino, but for himself as well. He wants to believe that he can be a good shark, or even that Bernie and Nino could be good sharks even though they have the appearance of a villain. This dilemma is the underlying theme of the movie in that Driver is trying to be a good person, but in the end his evil side ruins the situation, and he must prevail over his Mr. Hyde side to become A Real Hero to Irene and Benicio, and a real human being.

Driver with Irene and Benicio

This is simply one of my favorite movies ever. I have been a fan of Nicolas Winding Refn's movies for a while and when I saw the trailer for this movie in the theater, I was pumped. His past movies include Valhalla Rising, Bronson, and the Pusher trilogy to name a few. I especially recommend Bronson to anyone who enjoyed Drive. It is the story of Charles Bronson: a maniacal prisoner in the UK who wreaked havoc in every prison he ever attended. It is a very interesting movie, and when Refn puts his own spin on it, it is very entertaining. Tom Hardy, who portrayed Bane in Batman, was given the role of Bronson, and he played it brilliantly.

Ryan Gosling and Nicolas Winding Refn

A new movie is coming out this July called Only God Forgives starred by Ryan Gosling and of course directed by Refn. Needless to say I can't wait to see it, and I hope this isn't there last project working together.

The Color of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother by James McBride

The Color of Water by James McBride is a book about overcoming struggle and breaking through societal expectations. In the novel, McBride describes his childhood growing up in New York with 12 brothers and sisters, and their single, white mother. Herein lies the issue, because the 12 children were all dark skinned, and all had African American fathers. Their mother's name was Ruth, and was not only white, but Jewish as well. There were so many factors going against this family since this book takes place mostly in the late 50's and early 60's, and during those times racially mixed marriages were frowned upon, much more so than present times. McBride also goes on to write about his process before actually writing this book, and through this journey describes how he came to realize just how much adversity he's had to face throughout his life. He even found out some things that he never knew about his mother. There is also a pattern in this book that jumps from stories of McBride's childhood, to the next chapter in which his mother Ruth tells a story from her own childhood.

9 of the 12 Children with Ruth (James bottom left)

Ruth Shilsky was her name as a child, and she grew up in a Jewish family of immigrants from Poland in Suffolk, Virginia. She describes how strict her father was, and how eventually she was drawn away from her immediate family because of this, and rebelled by eventually running away and marrying a non-Jew, black man against her father's wishes. Through all of this you begin to see how these events molded her into the tough woman she became that aided her in protecting her 12 children from people who were against what their family stood for.

James and Ruth

I definitely recommend this book to anyone, no matter race, gender, or social status because it is very inspirational. It shows that no matter what your background is in life, or how much some people would like to see you fail, you just have to keep pushing and do it for yourself. The fact that Ruth was strong enough to not only raise her 12 kids nearly alone, but also put them all through college, is a testament to hard work and how unnecessary it is to care what others may think of you. This sort of moral lesson could be useful to anyone in any situation of diversity they may be facing. If Ruth can successfully raise 12 mixed race children in a time when racism was still very much alive, than surely someone else can succeed in much smaller and manageable endeavors. I will forever look back on this book for inspiration and say to myself, if she can do that, than surely I can do anything I put my mind to.

Stafford Response

I think Stafford meant, “The Life of a Poem” to be the process it takes to come to a finalized product. He obviously has many thoughts and ideas in which he remembers and later puts down on paper. He takes his time to choose the best vocabulary and wording to make the most impact on the reader. I do agree that all writing, in some ways, have a life of their own. Even if it is an assigned essay that must be researched instead of just thought out, the process it takes to get from point A to point B in a paper can at times be lengthy and other times it can be short. It’s a lot like life in that it can sometimes be short, so you have to use the abilities and resources available to write the best you can with the experience you have.

William Stafford

The man himself, Stafford, is definitely a very serene character. It seems he uses his calm mood to write his poetry. I think many people can learn to be more calm people from reading his words, and even watching interviews with him about his writing style.

          

I believe that much can be learned from Stafford’s words. He obviously firmly believes that anyone can write, it’s just having the drive and state of mind to do so. In the video you can see him taking a nature walk of sorts to gain inspiration, which I believe is his way of researching. As a graduate student goes through experiences to research for a thesis to graduate, Stafford uses his walks to gain stimulation to write his poetry and share it with people.