Dealing with emotions of Moore tornado from afar

A little over 13 month I listened to Marty Logan describe a tornado moving through my hometown of Woodward. On Monday, I sat on a bus and listened to Mike Morgan describe a massive, sometimes “barrel shaped” tornado move through Moore. When the twister first dropped near Newcastle, I held out a lot of hope that it would be a short lived event that would lift before moving into the community that had suffered a devastating event just 13 years earlier.

While looking at radar on my and listening to the KFOR “Storm Team” describe what they were seeing and try to report the event as best as possible, I began to come to the realization that this was only going to get worse…it was headed into Moore.

Many know that I am a huge severe weather geek. Not the kind that tries to look at the models and make my own predictions or forcast, I let people who are much smarter do that, but I pay attention enough to have an idea of what’s going on. The weather fascinates me. I will watch severe weather coverage for hours on end. I have watched coverage of tornados moving through communities, and while I was worried for the people, with the exception of Woodward in April of 2012, I had literally never become sick to my stomach. Monday became the second time.

At 2:26, as storms began initiating in central Oklahoma, I texted my best friend Britney, making sure she was paying attention to the weather. Britney is the varsity girls head basketball at Southmoore High School and I figured she was at the school. At 2:45, I received a reply that they had taken the students into shelters, and it was obvious that she was scared. At this point, for the first time in my life, I had no idea what to say, especially from a bus, three hours away, to try to help someone calm down. At 3:04, got a text saying “It’s huge. I can see it right behind us.” At this point, I became scared. Helpless. Prayerful. Numb.

Josh and Britney's house, looking up the driveway.

From that point on, I had to rely on the stream from KTOK in hopes of finding out she was okay. Shortly after the tornado passed Southmoore, I was able to put about 95-percentile on the school being spared by the descriptions from Morgan. However, then the realization came to me that the deadly tornado was tracking towards Britney’s home, and I had no idea where her husband Josh, also a very close friend, was. I went from tons of negative emotions, to joy that my best friend had been spared, to the negative emotions of not know where another close friend was.

Over the next two hours or so, I was patrolling Facebook and Twitter, trying to determine if anyone had heard anything. I had pretty much determined by that point that they had probably lost their home, but that was the least of my concerns. Finally, in the process of reaching Josh’s brother to tell him that I assumed Britney was unharmed, but didn’t have a good feeling about their home, Jay informed me that Josh had been able to reach out to them. Yet again, I was back to positive emotions. Joy. Thankfulness. Blessed.

As I type this from a hotel room in Stafford, Texas, I haven’t had much communication with Josh and Britney. Everything is hectic around there. They have no home. Their lives are in shambles, with just each other (their two dogs) and family to lean on at this point. But due to that lack of communication, I personally have had struggles dealing with the event. I know there isn’t a lot I can do, but I feel helpless now. I have images of people I care about picking through the rubble of their home, trying to salvage anything they can. I feel guilty that I am able to go to Top Golf, sit front row behind the third base dugout at Minute Maid Ballpark and each wings at a local Houston establishment.

I have been incredibly blessed in my life and haven’t had to deal with situations like this, while others, especially long time residents of Moore, have gone through this twice in a little over a decade. I’m so thankful that Josh, Britney, Itsi and Minnie Sayes are healthy.

This has truly been an emotional week.

My thoughts on "Chick-fil-A Crusades"...time to move on

Time for another blog post my friends. Even though it has been a while since I put my thoughts on “paper,” I thought I would chime in on what has been going on lately between Chick-fil-A, the LBGT community and ultimately, the Christian community.

First of all, I find it very funny that people would be surprised by the comments of Chick-fil-A President Dan Cathy. This is a man whose company has always been outspoken about their principles and even closes their stores on Sunday’s. As one commentator said on CBS, Chick-fil-A isn’t afraid to put their “principles over profits.” For that reason, I commend Mr. Cathy for being willing to stand up for what he believes and not catering to the potential profit loss that may come with his beliefs. On the flip side, I don’t completely agree with the way he came across in the statement.

There are really several aspects that fire me up about this most recent battle between some, and I stress some, conservative Christians and liberals.

We live in a country that is suppose to be about free speech (this is NOT a freedom of religion issue). He is a private business owner, who should be able to say what he wants to say. If you don’t agree with what he believes, simply don’t go to his establishment. For years, people of a minority have always fought to be heard, but when someone is against them, they do everything to tear the other group down.

Politicians in Chicago, Boston and anywhere else that has publically addressed this issue, apparently don’t understand that by trying to keep Chick-fil-A out of their city, they are being just what they are “standing up against,” and that is discrimination.

I also have a problem with the way conservatives, especially Christians, are handling this issue. Many times when a group of people “crazed” about something they believe in, they cross the line between standing up for their beliefs and becoming judgmental (yes, there is actually a difference). As a Christian, I think that there is actually more harm being done towards the faith than good.

Finally, I want to touch on bigotry. This term has been tossed around a lot on Facebook, Twitter and sadly, the media, when people address this issue. But when people are taking such a strong stance against the beliefs of a Christian person, berating them, telling them they are wrong, they themselves become bigots. I understand that someone who is against homosexuality per his or her religious beliefs, by definition, is a bigot. However, the same can be said for those who don’t have tolerance to the religious beliefs as well.

The Chick-fil-A issue is just two groups that have decided to go on a crusade against each other, doing the exact opposite of what should really be going on, and that is engage is loving conversation. Christians are called to love their neighbor, even when it is someone who doesn’t believe or live the same way they do. This can be done while also standing for what you believe it. On the other side, liberals seem to be all about getting along, so they need to learn that just because someone doesn’t agree with them, they don’t have to make a huge issue out of it (same goes for Christians).

Nighttime twister devastates my hometown

April 19, 1995: Oklahoma City Bombing

May 3, 1999: Moore, Okla., Tornado

September 11, 2001: World Trade Center, Pentagon, Terrorist Attacks

There are always dates in our lives when disasters happen, whether it is natural or man made, that we will never forget that what we were doing at that time. Around 12:15 a.m. on Sunday morning (April 15, 2012), I will always remember sitting in my living room in Bartlesville, Okla., listening to live coverage as my hometown of Woodward was being struck by an EF3 twister.

Woodward tornado report on KWTV's sister station KOTV in Tulsa.

As I am sitting here typing this, I am trying to completely put into words what I have been feeling over the past 24 hours. I know it may seem strange, not being directly affected by the event that took place nearly three and a half hours from where I currently live, but it still seems surreal (and I know I’m not along with people outside of our hometown).

Photo via News9.com

All weekend, as I usually do, I was keeping a close eye on the weather all around Oklahoma. After a long day of keeping close watch of tornados that skipped across Woods country, I thought my weather watching was over until a developing squall line in Western Oklahoma makes it way over to “Green Country.” As I was winding down, my Weather Radio app sent a tornado warning alert for Woodward. This really shouldn’t have been a surprise as super cells can break away from a separate line of severe storms and spin up quickly.

Within a minute, I quickly pulled up the KWTV live stream up on my computer. It wasn’t much longer after getting the stream going a sickening feeling began to come over me.

Usually when I am watching weather coverage on “Channel 9,” I hear Gary England talk to Marty Logan about a wall cloud, funnel, or a tornado touchdown in some obscure field in Oklahoma. Not this time. This time I heard Mr. Logan giving an emotional play-by-play of a nighttime twister ripping through my hometown. Logan was truly a hero to many people in the path, as his live reporting of where the tornado was gave many an idea of the severity of the situation. (Logan interview by Kelly Ogle following a brief report.)

My next several hours were spent keeping and eye on Facebook and Twitter, concerned about many friends and family that may have been in the path. Every time I would see a report about a house or a business that was damaged, I was able to narrow down who was in the path.

I know I have friends who have had their hometowns hit by a tornado in the past, and some have even lost their homes in previous events. But as I have gone through the day after, away from Woodward, seeing national news reports with people I know personally with their homes in piles of rubble, my heart aches so bad. I finally know the true meaning of feeling helpless. 

Woodward is a place that is special in my heart, and I know those that lost their homes and belongings will bounce back. Please remember them in your thoughts and prayers.

#WWTornado2012

Petrino fired as top Hog; praises go to Long

Breaking news: The Cubs still suck. Oh yeah, and Bobby Petrino was fired as the football coach at the University of Arkansas.

Photo via ArkansasRazorbacks.com of athletic director Jeff Long
 during his on Tuesday evening.

This was basically a text I sent to a buddy of mine tonight as I watched the university press conference in which Arkansas director of athletics Jeff Long officially announced that they had cut ties with the controversial coach. As much as I would like talk about how bad the Cubs seem to be this year, this post is about my thoughts on the firing of Petrino.

Most of you who would actually care to read this probably know the specifics of the Arkansas football situation over the past week. Basically, Petrino was in a motorcycle accident with a female he was having an inappropriate relationship with. He lied to the university, and Long, about the specifics of the accident. Long then found out that the young lady was an employee under Petrino who he had recently hired.

When Long placed Petrino on “administrative leave” last Thursday, I had a conversation with the same buddy about the situation. I told him then that I didn’t think Petrino should be fired on the grounds of an inappropriate relationship with the young lady, but things could be a lot different if they find issues in the way she was hired. Well, buddy…I was right.

Jeff Long press conference video through ArkansasRazorbacks.com. 

(More details are given about the situation by Long in the press conference. If I find a YouTube video, I will embed that at a later date.)

Petrino was not fired because he was hooking up with someone under him, and as Long said in the presser, that was a personal matter between the parties and their families (loosely translated). He was fired “with cause” because he lied to Long initially about the details of the accident and the original hiring.

If this was just about a man having an inappropriate relationship with someone else and he was fired, I would have completely disagreed with Long. That is a personal situation that, if it didn’t affect his duties to the university, should be left between him and his family. However, even though the initial relationship was a factor, his insubordination in misleading Long on the detail of the hiring of the young woman and the accident are legitimate grounds for termination.

Most know that I’m and Oklahoma State fan, but I am also a fan of the Arkansas Razorbacks. But as far as the battle between the two athletic directors, Long is way ahead of Mike Holder at this point. As Long said tonight, no one person is bigger than the Razorback football team or athletic department. It says a lot about him that he is willing to cut professional ties, as well as potentially hurt close friendship, with a coach who has obviously done a lot for Arkansas athletics.

I also want to praise Long for his candidness with the situation, not doing what many universities do when there is a embarrassing situation such as this. Instead of remaining silent about the situation and leaving room for more speculation and controversy, the Razorback athletic department (including the media relations office) addressed the situation with “forward motion” and attacked the issue.

Petrino did a lot for the Razorback football program. He helped make the Razorbacks a program that was a conference contender. I understand he was trying to save his own butt, and a lot of people would do the same thing in a situation such as this. But as we all know, when you lie to those in authority, there are going to be consequences.

Here is a link to Petrino's statement following his termination. PETRINO'S STATEMENT

What I (want to) do...athletic communications

The past couple of months have been some of the greatest of my life. Last semester I made a tough decision to not pursue what I THOUGHT was my dream position as the Sports Information Director at my alma mater, only serving as an interim from September to the end of December. However, it turned out to be a blessing in disguise as I was able to spend most of my time walking through the final stages of my wife’s pregnancy with her.

Now that our lives are returning to “normal,” I am starting to think more and more about my career. As most of you know, there have been many up’s and down’s along the way in my “professional” life since I graduated with my undergrad. I have applied for all kinds of positions in different types of companies and at several different universities. I have been in situations that I loved but it didn’t work out, and in situations that I couldn’t get out of quick enough.

Recently, in an interview for a part time job, I was asked the question, “where do you see yourself in five years?” Thank God I didn’t say what came to mind when I was asked that. But it really got me thinking about where I really wanted to be.

Of course I really don’t know where, as in location, but I know I want to be serving a college/university as an athletic communicator. Early in my college career when I got an opportunity to help out during football games, I became fascinated with the role these individuals play in college athletics.

About a year ago, I had someone tell me that the only reason I was a sports information director was because I wasn’t good enough to be an athlete. Even though this person was trying to insult me, I find it as a source of pride (despite it actually bothering me a little). As a sports fan who has never really been skilled at a particular sport, I realized this was my opportunity to serve, and make my staple in athletics.

Athletic communications is more than being a sports fan though; it’s about the student-athletes, coaches and the institutions. Many of the student-athletes would not receive some of the awards they receive if there wasn’t an athletic communicator behind the scenes nominated them (many times for the coaches). It is about recognizing the accomplishments of the athletes, coaches and teams.

I understand that I may not be able to hang with 99% of the participants of college athletics, but I love what I do behind the scenes, despite the stress sometimes. Ha!

I may not get recognized for being the guy that updates the website in a timely manner after the game with a score and recap, or the reason the stats are at least mostly accurate, but the joy some student-athletes get when they are recognized makes it all worth it.

Divided We Fall...

Over the past year and a half, I have become increasing frustrated with life. However, within that frustration, I am seeing myself in a whole new light. I feel like I have matured both as a man, husband and father (even though that may sound strange as you continue reading).

One of the popular issues in social justice circles right now is that of bullying. There are folks from all walks of life that are pushing for better awareness, rightfully so, of the issue. But many of those same people are also bullies when it comes to their ideals. We have become a culture that tries to verbally, psychologically and sometimes politically bully people by forcing our views and opinions on the opposing faction (I hope you picked up on the fact that I was trying to use faction as a negative word).

The issue here isn’t that of bullying, but that we have become a culture where we could careless if we are getting along with people who think, act, or worship differently than us. Whether it is religion (including interfaith conflicts), politics, sports, etc., we trying to do our best to tear the other side down, make the feel terrible, and maybe they will come to our side (our is figurative, of course). Everything has become a fight (i.e. Tim Tebow, who crosses both the religious and sports realms).

This is where my “maturity” will come into question with a lot of people. For some reason, which some psychologist could probably give me an answer for, I have become a person who basically carries the world’s problems in a backpack that is draped around my shoulders. If you aren’t picking up on the “image” I’m describing…I feel like I’m carrying a lot of heavy crap.

All of this, combined with other personal issues I have dealt with over the past several years, have contributed with, what I believe, have minor bouts of depression (I’m apparently not strong enough to be mature).

Laying it out

My wish is that we would be a little more conscience of others ideals and feelings. Yes, I’m talking about feelings, and not hurting them. I don’t know how many times I have kept from giving an opinion or making a statement, because I was to concerned with how people would react.

My porn addiction is a perfect example of what I am getting at. There have been many times that I have wanted to openly talk about my struggles with pornography, but was to afraid of how people would feel about this. I have seen many comments on various social media platforms that try discounting the issue of pornography. They have made snide and skeptical comments about the real issue.

I truly believe there are people who just enjoy trying to bully their opinion onto other people, and that goes for debating what I know for a fact is a real problem; porn addiction.

So let me just lay out a lot of issues, and where I stand on them. Many have changed over the years, past few months and even weeks. (NOTE: I am a white, protestant Christ follower, registered Republican).

----------

The next portion of this blog was intended to be and outlet of giving my opinions, which wouldn’t have agreed with my conservative or liberal, religious or political, Tebow or Non-Tebow friends. However, after talking to my beautiful wife, it shouldn’t really matter what my opinions are on certain issues. More than likely, it will ultimately incite more conflict with people disagreeing with me.

I respect our President, even though I disagree with him. I respect the governor of Oklahoma even though I disagree that she didn’t attended the President’s appearance because she had “family” plans. I respect many of the Tebow haters who try to argue with me with points that I have always agreed with (quarterback numbers) and is a completely different reason why I pull for the guy.

All I ask is that you respect people with opposing viewpoints. Please, don’t try to cause an argument, even if you don’t agree with someone who simply wants to give his or her opinion (attention social media users).

"Show proper respect to everyone: Love the brotherhood of believers, fear God, honor the king." - 1st Peter 2:17 (NIV, 1984)

Look back at American history, and you will see that our country was not founded on “Christianity,” but the idea that we can have different ideals, and be free from tyranny. Those seeking religious freedom were able to stand those seeking land and business opportunity for a common goal. UNITED WE STAND…

I believe we are moving away from that as a society, and that may be what ultimately brings our great nation to its knees. DIVIDED WE FALL…

Favre-geddon avoided yet again

And your favorite to the win the North Division of the NFC in 2010 is now officially the Minnesota Fightin’ Favre’s.

Let me start out with a little honesty, I love the fact that Brett Favre will be playing again in 2010. In his press conference today, he said this would be his final year because he contract runs out at the end of the season, and I truly believe him. While I know that I may be in the minority for believing this legendary quarterback is in his final season, let me remind you that he is 40 years old, and we don’t know for sure if we will even have “NFL” football next season due to a possible labor dispute.

And for those who think that he is coming out of retirement for the third time in his career, he never officially retired this summer, just didn’t really make a decision for sure until recently. And who can blame him, at the first of the summer he had this third ankle surgery for bone spurs, and following his second retirement (between the Jets and Vikings), he had shoulder surgery for a torn bicep. Ouch!

Let’s put in perspective what an accomplishment playing 18 years of professional football really is, by comparing No. 4 to another great quarterback, and hall of famer, Troy Aikman. Come September, the NFL will enter its 10^th season without Troy Aikman as a professional football player. Aikman is only three years older than Favre in age, and Favre was drafted only two years after Aikman. Favre played eight seasons more than a Hall of Fame quarterback, and hasn’t missed a game since starting week four of the 1992 season as a Green Bay Packer. But yet there are people out there still criticize him for waiting until the last minute to decide if he is going to play. Really?!

I personally would love to see this guy play until he is 50 years old. And for someone who has not started a game due to injury since 1992, he probably could! But I think at this point in his legendary career, he deserves to be able to decide in the middle of August if he wants to play or not. Minus a few things, such as the divorce with the Packers, it seems to me Favre is one of the most professional guys in pads that play underneath the NFL label. Brandon Marshall…Albert Haynesworth…are you paying attention? I’m just saying.