"Arky" Rutgers

I don't get too excited about "stocking stuffers" each Christmas, but this year changed all that.  Even though I'm more of a basketball than a football fan, I was thrilled.  I must admit, the first chance that night, I went on line to see if there was a BBall version.  No such luck, but I'm going to lobby for one, starting now.

"Oh Tim Pernetti....(Our Athletic Director)   Oh Mike Rice.... (Our Coach)  Oh Kerry Rice.... (Mike's wife, and a better email reader).  I gotta make this happen. 

If I start growing a beard now, I could look like him in about 35 years, and play Santa Clause in a wheel chair!

Next step out of the box was to name him.  Hummmm?

After a few minutes of thought, I said, "I've got it!"

Robert Kyle Rutgers!  Or, R.K.Rutgers, with a nickname "Arky!!"  Has a nice ring to it, no?  It could even be a nickname for a book!

Leave it to my "Octomom" to come up with this gift ("Octo" is a reference to age, 86 if you must know, not the number of children she had at once.).

Arky's first on the job training assignment was at a watch part at my pal Cal's house (yes, THAT Cal from  the book).  He did a pretty good job the first half, and I considered bringing him out to the car for the second, so he wouldn't bear the burden of a bad luck stigma after only one game.  It was too cold out in the car, and I didn't want him to feel punished instead of rewarded, so I put him face down on the couch next to me, and gave him the rest of the night off.

Of course, you know we had a miserable second half, and lost in overtime.

I've been second guessing my decision to bench Arky that second half.  So starting the first game next season, he'll be working full time from now on.  Maybe by then, he'll have a BBall brother to help us through THAT  season.