Thought For The Day

I never knew an early-rising, hard-working, prudent man, careful of his earnings, and strictly honest who complained of bad luck.
- Henry Ward Beecher -

Thoughts For The Day

The elevator to success is out of order. You'll have to use the stairs........one step at a time.
- Joe Girardi -

The measure of success is not whether you have tough problems to deal with, but whether it's the same problems you had last year.
- John Foster Dulles -

Thoughts For The Day

It's hard to beat somebody when they don't give up.
- Babe Ruth -

I was a vegetarian until I started leaning towards the sun.
- Rita Rudner -

Poem For The Day

I was reviewing the poetry I've used in the blog, and I came upon this one. I liked it so much that I decided to reprint it:


I have seen flowers come up in stoney places
And kind things done by men with ugly faces
And the gold cup won by the worst horse at the races
So I trust too.
- John Masefield -

Thought For The Day

The hardest thing to learn in life is which bridge to cross and which bridge to burn.
- David Russell -

OFFICIAL College Basketball Rankings

Men's Division I
1. Memphis - Squeaked by UAB, is there trouble ahead?
2. Tennessee - Game of the year, Saturday at Memphis.
3. UCLA - Nice win vs. USC, 4 of last 6 at home.
4. Texas - D.J. Augustin is the best player in the country.
5. Butler - Bracketbuster game vs. Drake on Saturday.
6. Kansas - Have played well since 3 point loss at Texas.
7. North Carolina - Lack of depth might hurt them in the Big Dance.
8. Xavier - Some close games lately, 8 game winning streak.
9. Stanford - Unfortunately, they're in the same league as UCLA.
10. Connecticut - 8 game winning streak, @ Villanova Sat.
11. Georgetown - Struggles on the road against good teams.
12. Wisconsin - Huge win vs. Indiana, Iliinois tonight.
13. Drake - Missouri Valley champs, at Butler Saturday
14. Indiana - They keep winning despite coaching chaos.
15. Washington State - Lost 3, won 3, which team will show up?
16. Saint Mary's - 6 game winning streak, Kent St. Saturday.
17. Texas A&M - Crushed by Texas, lets see what they're made of.
18. Purdue - Young Matt Painter should be coach of the year.
19. Louisville - Pitt, 'Nova, ND, G'town to end the season, wow!
20. Vanderbilt - Only a very good team can win 5 straight in SEC.
21. Kansas State - Brutal schedule will tell us how good they are.
22. Marquette - Need quality wins to get a good tourney seed.
23. Pittsburgh - Also needs quality wins, ND and Louisville next.
24. Kentucky - They have quality wins, will it be enough?
25. Davidson - 20-6, 18-0 in their league. They are very good!

Men's Division II
1. Saint Anselm - Needs two wins for a .500 season.
2. Bentley - Undefeated Falcons are flying high.
3. Grand Valley State - Another undefeated powerhouse.
4. Winona State - Their website has NCAA title game on the schedule!
5. Cal State San Bernadino - League tournament is in their gym.

Men's Division III
1. Framingham State - Impressive 72-70 win at Fitchburg.
2. Newbury - Nighthawks are 16-7, 7 game winning streak.
3. Amherst - Lord Jeffs have won 15 straight.
4. Brandies - Beat Rochester, at Wash. St. Louis Friday.
5. Washington Univ. (St. Louis) Here come the Judges!

Women's Division I
1. Connecticut - Beware! Big Monday game at LSU.
2. Tennessee - Thumped at home against LSU.
3. North Carolina - Next stop, Final Four.
4. Maryland - Playing Well, big win at Duke.
5. LSU - Fear the Lady Tigers, 13 straight wins.

Thought For The Day

Is sloppiness caused by ignorance or apathy? I don't know and I don't care.
- William Safire -

Election 2008

This will be an interesting day in the election process, especially for the Democrats. It's pretty clear Obama will win his birthplace, Hawaii, but Wisconsin is up for grabs. The demographics seem to favor Clinton, blue- collar, middle-class, blah, blah; and if she wins, it could set her up for big wins in the remaining big states; Texas, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. However, Obama's momentum could be too much to overcome. It seems like Democrats are getting more comfortable with him even though he did plagiarize a speech of White House Chief of Staff..................I mean Governor Deval Patrick.

Thought For The Day

When a man is wrapped up in himself, he makes a pretty small package.
- John Ruskin -

The Natick Cobbler

At the corner of Mill Street and West Central Street in Natick, just a short distance from where I grew up on Westfield Road, there is a small, red, wooden building that I passed almost every day. I knew what it was but I never really paid any attention to it and never took the time to learn the history behind that building. I'll bet most of the people who still pass by it every day don't any more about the building than I did.

It is the shoemaking shop of Henry Wilson, the eighteeth Vice President of the United States, who became known as the "Natick Cobbler". He was born Jeremiah Jones Colbath, to a very poor family in Farmington, New Hampshire in 1812. When he was 10 years old he was apprenticed to a nearby farmer, which meant he had to remain employed by that farmer until he reached the age of 21. He had very little education but he did learn to read, and he read every book he could find. When he turned 21 he literally walked to Boston to find a new job. He settled with a friend in the small town of Natick, and learned to be a shoemaker. He had his named legally changed to Henry Wilson, probably after someone he had read about when he was a child. Soon he opened his own shoemaking shop, hired employees, and had a very profitable business.

On a trip to Washington, DC, he became interested in politics, particularly the anti-slavery movement. Upon his return, he joined the "Natick Debating Society" and began thinking about a career in politics. He ran for public office, and was elected to the state legistlature. After serving in the state legistlature for many years, and losing a run for the Governor's office in 1854, he was elected to the United State Senate in 1855, where he served until 1873 when he was elected Vice President of the United States in the second term of Ulysses S. Grant. Unfortunately, he suffered a stroke shortley after arriving in Washington, and was plagued with health problems for two years. He died on November 22, 1875 at the age of 63.

His plaque in The Capitol Building in Washington, reads in part: ' He left to his grateful countrymen the memory of an honorable public service, and a good name far better than riches.'

Now the next time you're in Natick, at the intersection of Route 135 and Mill Street, you'll look over at that little red building and know all about it's history and it's former occupant, Henry Wilson.

Thought For The Day

There will be a time when loud-mouthed, incompetent people seem to be getting the best of you. When that happens, you only have to be patient and wait for them to self-destruct. It never fails.
- Richard Rybolt -