The Baron's Late Christmas Letter

Just like most of the people in my family I’m really bad at getting my Christmas Letter done. Since I sent out Christmas Cards I’ll use my blog to post my letter. 2010 was a great year.

The Baron started the year in the Outer Banks at the Almand Joy. It was a great weekend of partying with some of his closest friends. It started out great from the first day of the year. I was able to meet Danny McBride, many of you may know him as Kenny F****** Powers. He was a cool about us wanting to say hi and took a group picture with us.



The common theme of the year seemed to be weddings. I was invited to 5 and was in 4 of them. A family friend Alex Weakley started it out. Only to be followed by Spencer and Nicole’s wedding at The Homestead. This place was amazing and the rain was not going to keep these nuptials from happening. We partied the night away. The month of June finished with my sister’s wedding. This one was a blast. It’s always a show when my cousins and I get together. You never know what we’ll destroy. The golf carts were safe that weekend since we didn’t get a chance to hit the links. In October my friends Derek and Katie were married and it definitely lived up to their wild personalities. It was wild. The 2010 weddings finished up with Zeib and Amy in November with another wild weekend. Crystal, need I say more? I hope all of these couples have many years of happiness together.

The Baron also found a lady in 2010. The Baroness and I have been dating since May and things have been going great. We’ve both spent time traveling between the Virginia Plantation and her Mountain Vista. In August Spencer and Casey through a party for the two of us. If you were there you know why they party was thrown and if you were not you’ll have to figure it out. Anyways there was an Egyptian theme and a belly dancer. We all dressed up and hung out in a pyramid.

In April I made a trip to Indiana/Michigan to drive my mother out for my sister’s Wedding Shower. This was fun since I got to spend time drinking bourbon and smoking cigars with my brother. I also get to spend some time with my Grandmother.

In July I started working out…doctor’s orders. I decided to train to run a 5k which I did successfully complete in November. It was a lot of fun. Next is to get back in the gym and run another race so I can improve my time.

At the end of October the Baroness, my brother, and I attended O’Gradyfest once again hosted at the Rivah. It was another great weekend and the pig was amazing this year. I’m getting excited for this year just talking about it. RING THE BELL!!!! In case anyone was wondering, Brammer and I still were not beaten in corn hole in 2010. Bring it challengers…yeah I’m talking to you Tom.

December flew by this year with all the Christmas season activities. Christmas was great though. It was great spending time with the family. The Baroness and I went to Jacksonville for the Gator Bowl this year. Along the way we stopped in Savannah. After the game I witnessed, we should’ve stayed in Savannah. I know one thing we will return in the next couple of years.



That was my year in review. Bouncer and Rollins are still living the lazy life and enjoying it. The three of us are looking to move in the New Year.

So here’s to 2011. I know it will only be better than last year. (Challenge Accepted). Sweep the Leg.

The 5k

In 2010 I started training for a 5k that is held in Fredericksburg every Thanksgiving called the Turkey Trot 5k. I ran my first timed race since I ran track in middle school. I always enjoyed running but as I got older and found less time I stopped running and once you stop it becomes harder to start back up. Then you get to a point where you can’t run most of the time and you are walking most of the work out. Well in July of 2010 I joined the gym with my friend and co-worker Casey and to keep myself motivated I decided to run the 5k over Thanksgiving.

The last time I seriously ran prior to 2010 was in 2005 when I was training with an ARMY recruiter to get into shape so I could join the ARMY. By the time I was finished I was running 1.5 of the 3 miles we did every morning and afternoon. Running with someone is easier because they constantly motivate you to keep running. Running by yourself is a lot tougher mentally because you need to keep on yourself to keep going. In my 5k I ran the first half mile and caught my breath enough to start running again. The whole race I would run 100-200 yards and walk 200 or so more yards. My average mile times are nothing to write home about but for someone who was only on an elliptical 3 times a week for 4 months I felt good about my times. My first mile was 13.53. I felt great about it, I was shooting for 12 minutes but the first hill was a little tougher than I imagined. There is also the aspect of getting through the crowd as your run. I probably exerted a lot more energy then I needed to trying to run around people. Next time I may start at a slower pace and pick it up later once the pack has spread out. In case you were wondering how many people I’m talking about, over 5,000 people ran this race.

As I stated earlier I ran track in middle school. In 1995/1996 I was a lot slimmer than I am now. I also ran sprints. I ran the 100 and 200. I also did the long jump. In middle school I was already 6 feet tall so I could step further than most kids could jump. However my long jump was nothing to brag about. Halfway through the season Coach Woody pulled me from the event. I was ok with that. In practice Coach Woody also had me run the 100 and 200 Hurdles. The hurdles in middle school track were much shorter than the hurdles in high school. Again this is where my height came in to play I could do the hurdles without really messing up my stride whereas shorter runners had to jump. There was one kid who literally hit every hurdle but he planned it that way. He was fast too. Our track team met the week before the County track meet. The best I did that year was finish 4th in the 200. I was proud of that, I didn’t run track because I thought I was the fastest kid in school, I ran to stay in shape for soccer season. The problem being there was not soccer in middle school at the time. At the team meeting Coach Woody announced that our top two hurdlers were injured and wouldn’t be able to run so he asked me to fill in for one of them. This was awesome because I was going to get a chance to compete at the county track meet. I ran the 100 and 200 hurdles in the meet. I didn’t place. I was close in the 100. The 200 was much harder than I expected. The reason being is hurdling while going through a turn is a lot harder than it looks. It was still a lot of fun and is an experience I’ll never forget. If I can find a copy of my old track photo I will post it here later.

So back to the 5k, I think my second mile was the toughest mentally. Trying to keep motivated and knowing that you are not halfway through the race was hard. Plus almost the whole mile was an incline, not a high grade but high enough. It was one of those roads that you think is perfectly flat but as you continue you realize you have been going uphill for most of the mile. Thankfully that last part of the mile was downhill. I ran the second mile in 14.27, slowing down a little bit but still on pace for my goal of 45 minutes.

The 3rd mile was tough but probably the easiest. I set a goal before the race that I wanted to run the race under 45 minutes. So far I have been on pace for that goal. The timing is tricky though because of the 0.1 miles so I needed to run each mile under 15 minutes to make sure I had a chance. I was monitoring my time on my watch so I knew where I was time wise but had no clue where I was on the course. I just kept running thinking I was getting close but the course just kept going. By the time I finished the third mile I was spent. My time on the last mile was 15.08 so I was still in contention to meet my goal of 45 minutes. The problem being I had to run the last tenth of a mile in a minute which may not seem difficult but there were a lot points where I just wanted to walk it home to the finish line in that last stretch. The cool thing was all the people standing on the streets cheering the runners on. It gives you a rush of adrenaline. I had no clue who some of these people were and for the most part the race was over the real runners finished 30 minutes earlier. But there were two instances where men were in the street encouraging everyone and telling us to keep going because we were almost there so I just took off and ran has hard as I could the last stretch and finished the race in 44.29 with half a minute to spare.

My friend Ryan was waiting at the finish line, we planned on meeting before hand but never found each other. Which is surprising because he is 6 foot 9 inches tall. But he was there to cheer me on those last few steps. The feeling after the race was both draining physically but awesome at the same time. I’m really glad I decided to run the race and plan on running more in the future. The reason I got the idea for this story was Ryan asked me if I want to run a 10k with him in May. I’m not sure if I’m ready for a 10k but I’m going to try and get there by May.

Crazy Thoughts That Come to me When I have to Wake up at 4:30am Everyday.

The other day I was discussing a Survivorman type show with a friend. The difference would be that it would not teach the viewer how to survive in the wild but instead teach them how to survive the streets of the concrete jungle. I thought it would make for a few short humorous YouTube clips if it was filmed to mock the Survivorman show. It quickly turned in to a list of 10 things a bum in the city needs to do in order to survive. Neither of us knows how to survive as a homeless person but working in the Nation’s Capitol there are plenty of examples. So here are the 10 things to think about if you find yourself homeless on the streets of a major city.

1) Stay away from Meth Heads – this is important because if you are a homeless person you probably don’t have much as it is but Meth Heads will take what you do have of value. Meth heads are nuts so it’s best to stay far away from them. If you are a homeless Meth Head this point may still be valuable because you don’t want to share your score.

2) Stay away from bodies of water – this includes water that is flowing through gutters too. Unlike in the wild where the water may be clean(er) in the city it is dirty. Now some of you may be asking, “How do I clean myself?” That’s easy this point only pertains to drinking the water. If you want to clean yourself you can do so in a river, lake, pond, stream, or reflecting pool. However I would be careful to watch out for the authorities so you do not get arrested, unless that is plan. (Side note: getting arrested could guarantee 3 hots and a cot indoors which might be nice on a cold night.) Although I would not recommend bathing in the Potomac or the Anacostia Rivers. I’m also sure rivers that run through other major cities are not places you want to take a bath.

3) Get a hat – this is important because you need something to use when pan handling to hold the money people give you. Other methods I have seen are Starbucks cups. The hat can also be used to keep the sun off of your face or to keep you warm in the winter months.

4) Suit Up – before I decided to focus on survival points for the homeless I was thinking you need a suit to survive in the city. Some restaurants require a jacket and tie to eat. However it still works for a homeless person because they might have a job interview and need to look nice. But definitely make sure you have clothes to wear. If you are running around with no clothes on people will think you are crazy and not want to give you money. Also see side note in point 2.

5) Get a knife – knives have many practical uses. The most important use would be self defense. You might still need to protect yourself from Meth Heads. But you may need it to cut up some kindling to start a fire in a barrel or gut a fish that your catch for dinner. The knife could also be used to cut your long pants into shorts in the summer.

6) Get some rope – rope is another useful tool like the knife. Rope provides a place to hang your clothes if they need to dry off. Rope can be used to build a make shift shelter. The knife can also be used to cut the rope.

7) Find Shelter – this one may depend on your pan handling earnings. If you get enough money to stay in a shelter then life is good. Other options are a tent or under an overpass. Don’t forget the rope either if you find a tarp you have the makings of a tent.

8) Seek warmth – If you are in a cold weather city find a warm coat for the winter months. However I recommend hitchhiking your way south and finding a warmer city to stay in. I read once that Las Vegas has an entire underground city where people live in a giant community. I imagine it to be like the Ninja Turtles hideout but bigger. Supposedly these people make their money from change tickets that people leave at slot machines.

9) Lose the suit Find some alcohol – I needed a tenth one after losing the suit. The alcohol will help you sleep on nights that you are outside. However don’t appear drunk when pan handling this will hurt your income. Also if you are trying to get into a shelter for the night they make you take a breathalyzer test.

10) Stake out your territory – when doing this you need to make sure you do not piss off any other homeless people. I would recommend finding the weakest link and then taking his/her area if you cannot find an unused place. Remember you can’t start out downtown you will need to work your way up to that. Some places that see a lot of foot traffic: near office buildings, metro stations, professional sports complexes, and city hall.

The Baron hopes none of you ever find yourself in a situation where you need to know any of these survival tips. I also don’t know if they would help you survive anywhere but I’m pretty sure they would. Also we've had a good laugh at the homeless' expense so to help one out take a donation to your local food bank or help out at a local shelter. Happy New Year!!!!

The State of Michigan Football

I attended the Gator Bowl on Saturday to watch my beloved Michigan Wolverines take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs. Michigan showed up to play 14 minutes of football. Let me start by saying that the offense was fun to watch at the beginning of the season with Denard Robinson at QB, but when he played good teams he could not perform as well. In the Michigan State, Iowa, Penn State, and Illinois games Denard was injured in the first half and Tate Forcier finished those games. Had the team not built such a large deficit before Tate took over they might have won those games since Tate did bring them back to have a chance at the victory in those games and eventually win the Illinois game. The only quality wins on the schedule were UCONN (the Big East champions) and Notre Dame. How quality are those wins they were not impressive teams this year.

The biggest problem with the team however was the Defense. Greg Robinson took Syracuse down to a 1 or 2 win team each season he coached there. Now he has destroyed Michigan's defense. Michigan during the Bo, Mueller, and Carr years had tough defenses. For the last two seasons Michigan's defense has been progressively getting worse. Mississippi state exposed them on Saturday. Michigan is lucky that Wisconsin didnt hang 70+ points on them at the end of the season the way they did Minnesota and Indiana.


Lastly Denard Robinson. Denard is fast and looks much faster in person than on TV. He can read defenses well enough and see holes in the line great. Plus once he is in the open field he is gone. However his passing is so-so. This is why Tate played many of the second halves this season when Michigan was down. They needed an accurate passer. Denard has problems throwing a screen pass which is a necessary play when you do not have a strong rushing attack. The Philadelphia Eagles used to run screens for Brian Westbrook because he was too small to run up the middle. It’s a simple pass and when it’s not thrown 6 feet over a receivers head can gain an offense a lot of yards if the person catching the pass has some speed. That speed is nullified when a receiver is jumping in the air to catch a pass. By the time that receiver lands on his feet a good defense is going to be there to make the tackle.

So how does Michigan fix this problem? First they need to fire Greg Robinson and get a competent Defensive coordinator in there. Secondly they need a quarterback that can throw with accuracy. If that is Tate than play him if it is Kevin Gardner who was red shirted this year then play him. Tate may not be an option if he doesn’t get his grades up anyways. Find a way to use Denard that doesn't involve him throwing the ball all the time. They also need to find a power running back. The defense was young this season and had two or three walk-ons starting by the end of the season. They need to recruit better players and the ones that are their need to mature. Lastly I'm not sure if firing Rich is the right call. I wouldn’t be upset if they did fire him but I wouldn’t be upset if they kept him. All I know is whoever the coach is, I want to win. I want to beat Ohio State, Michigan State, and play for Big Ten championships.

All I know is that I'll still support the team all the way to the bottom if that’s where it goes because one day soon the Michigan Wolverines will be on top again. Go Blue!!!