I start this week reiterating my thanks. First of all, to ArrowheadOne for the freedom to write as inspired and the readers for the engagement. Seeing my stuff go up and engaging on the comment board is a highlight of my week. Thanks for following me down my long-winded rabbit holes to something CHIEFS-related. My stories tend to follow what I am doing in life during my previous week, and this is no different. I cannot tell the story of my week without getting more into my family than I have previously. My stories mention my wife often my kids a couple of times, and I am pretty confident that my cats have come up. So far, I have not mentioned names. It isn’t a privacy thing or anything; we are all pretty out there. It’s more trying to stay somewhat on point (but long-windedly failing at that haha).
Some Formal Introductions
My wife’s name is Misty, and she is originally from San Diego. One of these off-season weeks, I will get into how we met building a hotel in Washington. We have been together since early 2007 and married since 2010. She is my partner in crime, running the wedding service company, and a hell of a mom. Next up? Our kids. The oldest is Vivian, who turns 9 in May, and is currently crushing 3rd grade. She is a vocal ring-leader among her peers, and she loves music. In January, my son, Carter, turned 6 and is quieter than my daughter. This puts him solidly in 3rd place in terms of loudness in the family. Viv and I battle fiercely for that crown.
The other members of the family are our two cats, both adopted from the Hays, KS Humane Society. Siena is older and received her name after the town where Misty lived studying abroad in Italy. We got her about 14 years ago. Our other cat, Stryker, joined the family 12 years ago. He was the coolest cat in the world. I chose this time to talk a bit more about my family because we lost Stryker this last Friday night.
Stryker AKA Many Aliases
We called him by many names, but the official was Stryker. That was a name we saw at a pet store, and it clicked with us. He gravitated toward us immediately at the shelter. It simply clicked. The staff of the store all commented how much they enjoyed him and their joy the cat found a home. Siena is a cat that hits all the stereotypes: moody–Stryker likes only a few people, and so on. Stryker was a dog, and it was funny to watch them coexist. Stryker was the most vocal cat I have ever seen. The constant meows resonated, letting us know he needed more food, attention, and awareness of his existence. He would also eat way more food than necessary and run around until he threw some up.
His primary second name (for the record, all the names were given by me) was Jean Gary Diablo. That one is for all my Beavis and Butthead fans (if there are any). We had both cats before the kids, so they grew up with them. Jean Gary Diablo does not roll off the tongue, so Viv had obvious trouble saying that as a toddler. His name became Jean Labo (pronounced Law-Bow) as a result, and we all started calling him Labo.
The Gray Cat
We also constantly referred to him as The Gray Cat, which was for obvious reasons. I want to point out that we are both dog and cat people. We had both on the farm and picked cats because we live in the city and lead hectic lives. Cats are cool hanging out by themselves in an empty house for a couple of days and don’t need the room to run. Our yard is smaller than a dog deserves. At some point, we will go more suburban, and a dog will join the crew. For now, Stryker has been the doggish cat in our lives. One more thing I will mention is he would crawl under the covers as a kitten looking for any extra proximity.
The best part about Stryker was his interaction with the kids. He tolerated the kids fumbling over him as babies and toddlers and never hissed or retaliated. I just took it all in and enjoyed the attention. He left us late last week, and we miss him tremendously. The tricky part is how quickly it happened. Our timing from realizing there was an issue to losing him was a couple of weeks. It serves as a reminder to hold close to the ones you love. You never know.
So Stryker, on behalf of me, Misty, Viv, and Carter: thank you. Thanks for the excellent memories; we will cherish them forever.
One More Note About Misty and My Mentality
Misty is my most prominent critic and advocate. It is a balance and approach I appreciate and need. I usually bounce my column ideas off her before I get into the writing. She does a great job of pointing me in a good direction. One question she often asks is, “who is this for?” That is her way of questioning the audience and why anyone would want to read my stuff. It’s good feedback, a reminder to avoid going too far off the deep end, and a reality check I need. I appreciate her direction but have to admit something this week.
My audience this week is me because I needed to write this.
Strange Times
I turned 40 last year and am starting to feel something I knew was coming. There is a point in everyone’s lives when funerals start to outnumber weddings. That will never happen for me because I operate in the wedding industry. The thwarting of reality is an attraction to it me. Our reality is our mortality. I attend many weddings, but they are part of the business, not personal. My reality is mortality is starting to catch up. Many family members are climbing in age, and Stryker gave me a harsh reminder. I will attempt to keep bummers to a minimum, but I probably have more like this coming. My goal will be to let anyone interested get to know more about my family. I believe Arrowhead One readers like history and biopic stories, which will be my approach.
Thanks for sticking with me so far.
Let’s Talk Some CHIEFS
Nothing new happened this week. Andy Reid confirmed what we all knew. The Hill trade was all about the money. We signed Marquez Valdes-Scantling to pair with JuJu Smith-Schuster.
The dust has settled on the Tyreek Hill trade. That trade and the Stryker situation have similarities for me. Both cases built unexpectedly over a more extended than recognized period. First, Tyreek and his agent, Rosenhaus. had their eye on the market. The speculation from many fans states that a quicker deal avoids reality. I have a hard time believing that Hill’s camp was looking for speed. The second parallel is how quickly things escalated and resolved. Stryker lasted just under two weeks, and Hill went to the Dolphins in hours. The time to recognize and the process was brief.
I end up in the same place in both situations. Hindsight is 20/20 and not helpful. The reality is what it is. My choice is to reflect on the joyous times and be thankful for them. Peace Cheetah, glad you got your money.
Some NCAA Love
The other significant events from this last week revolve around the NCAA tournament. I love the tourney, but I have to admit not paying attention to some key details. My visits to Fiserv Forum, primarily home to the Bucks, have been frequent. I also attend concerts regularly there and also in some other venues. My email is all over Ticketmaster, and I am on the radar of other brokers. I recall getting a message to buy tickets for the opening weekend and Fiserv, but I blew it off. Man, that was a mistake. I bought a last-minute for session 1 featuring Purdue, Yale, Virginia Tech, and Texas. The concourse had all the TVs with the other games on the four stations—the perfect way to watch. I will not miss such an email again and will be all over the tickets.
The other thing I missed was the Midwest Regional semis and finals (AKA Sweet 16 and Elite 8) being in Chicago. That’s KU’s region. I did not get any emails about those tickets but did end up at both rounds. College basketball is an electric atmosphere, and March Madness is the best time. I have never looked to view the NCAA Tournament any way but on TV. That has changed moving forward.
Avett Brothers
I am a day late getting my column together. It was not my intention, but life got in the way. Part of having the extra day is I get to mention Misty, and I caught a concert last night. The Avett Brothers are a folk-rock band from North Carolina and a personal favorite of mine. They put on a hell of a show. I recommend checking them out.
Josh Kingsley – ArrowheadOne