Ace Story

River Roderick stood at the tee box Sunday at the 10th hole of the Desert Fox Disc Golf Course at Paul B. Johnson State Park watching his dad's first shot bounce just off the basket.

River said his dad had "gotten hosed" and that he'd ace this one for him, said Dale McVeay, president of the Hub City Disc Golf Association.

And just like that, River stepped up, let fly and watched as his yellow disc dropped right into the basket.

"I just stepped to the tee box, threw it and it curved up, a nice big curve," River Roderick said. "It just went into the chains."

The feat was especially great considering that River hasn't even started kindergarten yet.

"His face was like, he couldn't believe it," said Rebecca Roderick, River's mother, who was there along with other members of the Spin Crazy team that competes on Sundays at Johnson State Park.

"It seemed like the whole park just stopped. Guys in a couple of boats started cheering for him, some friends who were playing behind us started cheering him on. It was a great moment."

It isn't quite official yet, but once the certification process is complete, River Roderick will take his place in the Professional Disc Golf Association record book as the youngest player ever to hit a hole-in-one.

The previous youngest ace was recorded by 8-year-old Nathan Sofinowski of Lewisville, Texas.

It's fitting that this kid should be the one to etch his name in the record book. The family, which makes its home in Petal, is a big part of the disc golf community, and the budding sport is a big part of their lives.

"We always go out and play on Sunday," Rebecca Roderick said. "That's our family day."

Chad Roderick discovered disc golf a few years ago, then brought his wife into it and they drew their son into the game.

"He was being pushed around that course before he could walk," said Rebecca Roderick.

Or as River puts it, "I was walking the course before I could walk."

Sunday, the Spin Crazy team, of which River is a member along with his parents, was playing the Desert Fox course as part of a group of about 25 players.

The 10th hole is the course's signature hole, known as the water hole because it lies on a peninsula that juts into Geiger Lake. Chad Roderick's first shot came close to going in, but rattled off the chains and fell away.

"River's mastered the fine art of smack talk," McVeay said. "It's very strange to hear it from a 'lil guy standing 3-feet, 6-inches tall and weighing in at a hefty 45 pounds. And he was talking smack with us about it.

"We're all going to have to eat crow for a while."

Part of the incentive was purely financial.

"He asked us, 'What will you give me if I make an ace?'" said Ransom Jones, another member of the Spin Crazy team. "I told him I'd give him five dollars, and everybody else said they'd pitch in.

"He turned it loose and about three-quarters of the way, you could see it was going in. He turned around and it looked like he'd seen a ghost."

After getting his Wraith disc autographed by everyone present, River collected the promised payoff, then went out and bought a new disc.

"That one's going in the shadow box," Rebecca Roderick said.

Disc golf isn't the only thing River does well. He skateboards at a high level and he's a crackerjack T-baller.

"This kid is amazing at everything he does," Jones said. "He rides a skateboard like a 15-year-old and when he swings a bat in T-ball, he doesn't hit the tee. He hits the ball, he can catch and he can throw."

Right now, though, disc golf is River's first love, and he's already making a name for himself. He's competed in one tournament already, and once he gets a little older, he'll likely be a regular on the regional circuit.

"He actually throws it further than kids twice his age," Jones said. "On a good day, he can throw it 150 feet."

So, whether it is in disc golf, baseball or some other yet-to-be-determined activity, the chances are pretty good you haven't heard the last of River Roderick
http://www.hattiesburgamerican.com


Wow......a 5 year old gets a hole in one. That little dude just set the bar pretty damn high. Just for the record, I haven't come close to one yet. The basket was on this little peninsula between two swamps by the way.

Far Out

Too foggy so I been throwin some disc, tending to some gardening and enjoying 1970 and 1972.
Fetival Express is all footage documenting a trans-Canadian journey of The Greatful Dead, Janis Joplin, The Band and many others in the summer of 1970. The festival traveled by train from Toronto to Calgary.....one unending, acid-and-whiskey-induced jam session from start to finish!

And Best of Bowie shares classic footage throughout his career but the first half of disc one is essential viewing. Absolute classic versions of Pretty Thing, Rebel rebel, and Young Americans. And the inspiration for Derek Smalls must be influenced by Trevor Bolder, bassist for the the Spiders From Mars. Great Spinal Tap-like moments everywhere.

Dabee and N.Todd, add this to your Que.

Thanks a lot assholes!

Scientists have created a mosquito that could very well save thousands of lives....Researchers are excited and hopeful because they have succeeded to genetically engineer a mosquito that is resistant to malaria. Furthermore, the modified insect survives better than its disease-carrying ‘brethren’ and the gene is transmitted to future generations.

If such a mosquito can dominate in the wild, replacing the parasite-bearing ones, it could prevent humans being infected with malaria.

http://www.playfuls.com

I can't wait to ride my toyota iSwing through the ghetto during a thunderstorm.

Thirsty Camel Rebellion

Australia’s worst drought in a century has driven thirsty feral camels into at least one western desert community, where the animals damaged toilets, taps and air conditioners in a frantic search for water. Glen Edwards of the Desert Knowledge Cooperative Research Center told reporters that a wild camel management plan is urgently needed.

He said the approximately 1 million feral camels in the region frequently wreck native species, tear down fences and invade Aboriginal sites.

The drought has made the animals’ aggressive behavior far worse than normal, according to local residents who have experienced their wrath.

Single-hump camels were introduced into the Australian outback as pack animals during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Edwards said that an uncontrolled population explosion since then means a massive camel cull, or export for slaughter, is needed to protect human development and the environment.
www.earthweek.com

Exit Strategy

Read the news today oh boy!

Analog TVs will no longer receive a signal come Feb. 19, 2009, unless users update their hardware to receive a digital signal.

In February 2009 my rabbit-ear reliant television will become obsolete.....upon hearing this news I first experienced shock and then I spiraled into anger but then I started thinking about it. I started thinking about it as an opportunity for me.

Back in the mid-90's I lived without tv for quite sometime. It was an exercise to fight my TV addiction. I was happy sometimes. I listened to way too much AM radio though. I caught myself wanting to go to my friends houses just to watch their tvs. Finally I broke down and went to circuit city and bought a handheld model and with it I was very happy. But everyone laughed at me and thought I was silly for watching a two inch television so one day KB gave me his television/VCR machine. I was happier because I could play video games.

Recently BSA came down and he was frustrated about playing videogames on such a little television so he bought me a bigger one and I didn't feel right about it but now it's there and part of me....part of my life.

I've realized in 2007 that it's no longer necessary to watch television to see your favorite shows because now they all come out on DVD....without commercials. I also think tv technology will demand a more pay-per-view format in the near future meaning you will simply buy the channels and shows you want to watch. Maybe that's why it is imperative for tv's to have the digital components. I'm sure Itunes will sell all the tv you wish before too long.

Could just break down and get cable but that would be very unhealthy for someone like me. I have no problem finding something interesting to watch on cable television. Therefore, I could technically spend the rest of my life watching it while being perfectly content. I use the rabbit ears as a tool to save me from myself.

Oh yeah, opportunity.

There's still time for me to be ready. How about on 2/19/09 I wake up in the morning, my final morning in America, and I ride my beach cruiser down to the harbor where my sailboat is stocked and ready....ready for the rest of my life. How about that day is my bonvoyage. I will no longer watch tv and I will only live my life from there on. I will sail to New Zealand first and try and stop at every island I can along the way....and after that I don't even know.

I could be ready by then.

Find out why 163 is the coolest number!
http://math.arizona.edu/~mcleman/CoolNumbers/CoolNumbers.html

now that's a bobcat!

Ice Cube is making Family Movies

Soon to be released to theatres, "Are We Done Yet". I found out it is a sequel to "Are We There Yet".

"Newlyweds Nick (Ice Cube) and Suzanne (Long) decide to move to the suburbs to provide a better life for their two kids. But their idea of a dream home is disturbed by a contractor (McGinley) with a bizarre approach to business."
IMBD

This too is another sign of the quickening!

Dabee and I watched a bobcat grab a gopher and then it took off into the bushes. I'm sure I haven't ever been closer to one.

$2.99 a gal.

.....for the cheap stuff. That's all I use....the cheap stuff. Yesterday I pumped what I think will be the last of gas priced under $3 bucks a gallon for quite some time to come....possibly forever.

It got this high for a while but then when elections happened they had to lower it so the governor could be re-elected. It was inevitable prices would soar again when the politicians felt comfortable.

The news credits refinery problems and demand for the spike.....never avarice....never keen political planning. The people see through it.

Like stamps I wish the price would be determined for a set period of time. Raise it to $5 a gallon and don't touch it for 5 years. I would stand behind that. I could feel comfortable knowing the price has a structure I could anticipate. People would complain though. Lots of folks think we shouldn't be spending the money we do for fuel. Gasoline really is expensive though and it isn't fair for the government to shield us away from the true cost.

Maybe that's it.....maybe the government needs to get out of the fuel business altogether and we will pay for fuel what it really costs.....does anyone know what it really costs?

I meant in dollars....not gallons of blood.

"We are like sailors who unable to dismantle their ship in the safety of a dock, must reconstruct it on the open sea"
-Otto Neurath

This voyeuristic peek into various protest actions of the Church of Stop Shopping is a peek I recommend.

Vegetable Slander

"AB 698 would allow produce growers to sue people or companies for making false or disparaging statements about perishable farm products for actual damages, provided certain conditions are met....(the bill)is written with many provisions to protect against abuse. In order for an action to be successful, farmers need to meet and prove all of four criteria: the false statements are clearly about the farmer and his or her perishable product and not just about produce in general; the statement was disseminated to the public; the statements were known to be false by the source; and it is recognizable that the false statements would cause financial harm."

http://www.venturacountystar.com

I will never shit talk kale again!

Wiicked

Consoles....yeah, I never wound up getting a new one (thankheavens) but I must admit that I am unhealtfully engaged in a season of Tiger Woods golf circa 2000...ahhhh, the good old days.

Since I'm really into product endorsements (I must be losing my mind this time, I must be losing my mind) these days (I must be losing my mind this time, I must be losing my mind) how about the Nintendo Wii (I must be losing my mind). Was staying over in Berkeley a couple weeks back and one of Nik's buddies brought the console over for a game night.

For those who don't know, the Wii controller has a built in gyroscope that senses movement. You must physicaly move to participate in most games.

It was fun! I liked the boxing...was a great workout. The games are really simple, old-skool nintendo style! Easy to learn. Active.....lot's of promise. For any parent buying their children a console I would endorse this one 100%. If your child is gonna be a gamer at least make them exercise for it.

And be sure to wear the strap. Apparently there are countless stories of people losing control of their joystick and throwing it through windows, tvs, and other breakable surfaces.

Now that's what I call fun!

Saw this wacked out one called Rainbow Bridge. It was a quasi-Jimi Hendrix movie because he was in it , kind of. The first hour and ten minutes features this crazy, psychedelic religious cult that lives in Hawaii They are trying to communicate with the, "space bros". Jimi comes to their compound to perform a concert.

The concert was kick ass! It was so windy they rubber-banded sheets of foam over the mikes.

My favorite part was the random surf sequences soundtracked over Jimi's guitar solos.

Foreverever?

They are doing it again and I am fine with it! In fact I think we pay far too little for postage. After it is all said and done, I know it costs more than 39 cents for my letter to get anywhere. C'mon.....a candy bar costs 70 something cents.

They are also talking about creation of the "forever stamp"

A forever stamp would not carry a denomination, but would sell for whatever the first-class rate was at the time. For example, if the 41-cent rate takes effect, forever stamps would sell for 41 cents. If rates later climbed to 45 cents or more, the price of the forever stamp would also go up at the counter or machine, but those purchased before the change would still be valid to mail a letter.

Ahhhhhhh, whatever, that's fine....maybe I'll just invest in a truckload of forever stamps and be set for my lifetime, or the apocalypse, or till they make forever obsolete.

How about instead of all this they just raise postage to a buck a stamp and promise not to raise postage for 10 years. I'm down.