Update?

So, I decided to make a solid effort to updating this here little piece of the Internet a little more often. Now I find myself sitting here in front of my laptop in the earliest minutes of November Movember the 19th and I'm feeling pretty tired after an evening full of reviewing Business Organizations cases followed up with looking into substantive due process in Constitutional Law.

There is now an inner struggle going on, do I think of a funny, witty, and interesting update for this blog or do I just pack it in for the evening and catch what few precious minutes of sleep are available to law students, especially with finals looming dangerously close.

The good news is I've got MLB Network's review of the 1968 season playing in the background. The bad news about this, Tim McCarver was the catcher for the '68 Cardinals who made it all the way to the World Series this year, this means Tim was kind enough to donate his time to give some of his pearls of wisdom about how great he was the '68 Series was. The most exciting thing of all; however, is the the 1968 World Champion Detroit Tigers featured seven former Duluth Dukes including 31 game winner Denny McLain (that's right, he won 31 games in 1968).

Anyways, I suppose I should just pack it in and get all ready for another day of classes and get another day closer to Home (we're under a month)! We'll catch up again real soon, LCFM fans! Keep your stick on the ice!

MOVEMBER UPDATE:
Check out my Movember Updates on my Mo Space: http://us.movember.com/mospace/270738/

Do it or else I'll send this guy after ya!

Movember 2009

As most of my readership already knows, the eleventh month of the calendar year has become the month now now as Movember and I have decided to join this global movement that is bringing much needed attention to cancers that affect men. I’m doing this by growing a Mustache this Movember. There is no doubt that I am going to look foolish, but this is for a great cause. My commitment is to grow a mustache all November and I am hoping that you will support my efforts by making a donation. The funds raised go to the Prostate Cancer Foundation and the Lance Armstrong Foundation (LIVESTRONG).

What many people don’t know is that 1 in 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime and testicular cancer is the most common cancer in men aged 18-35. Facts like these have convinced me I should get involved.

To make a donation, you can either:

• Click this link http://us.movember.com/mospace/270738/ and donate online using your credit card or PayPal account , or
• Write a check payable to ‘Movember Foundation’, referencing my Registration Number 270738 and mailing it to: Movember Foundation, PO Box 2726, Venice, CA 90294-2726.

All donations are tax deductible to the extent permitted by law.

The Prostate Cancer Foundation will use the money raised by Movember to fund research to find better treatments and a cure for prostate cancer.

The Lance Armstrong Foundation will use the money raised by Movember to fund:

• The LIVESTRONG Young Adult Alliance program which has the goal of improving survival rates and quality of life for young adults with cancer between the ages of 15 and 40.
• Research initiatives to further understand the biology of adolescent and young adult cancers.

I've been tracking my progress on my Movember page at: http://us.movember.com/mospace/270738/ complete with photo updates, check it out!

And Two Months Later...

While sitting in Evidence class, this guy, says that I need to update my blog. Well, here you go.

School is dominating my life right now, but the good news is we're starting a new tradition in the same vein as "Track Suit Friday" from last year. "Football Jersey Friday" is now where it's at and will soon be sweeping the rest of the Professor Stacy's Evidence class, just you wait.

Also, tonight in the State of Hockey, there is a much anticipated return of a former player who now plays for the New York Rangers. No, it's not Aaron Voros. Marian Gaborik, the first ever draft pick of the Minnesota Wild franchise back in the year 2000 is back in Minnesota after leaving as a free agent this past summer as the team's all-time record holder in essentially every offensive category (as well as career groin injuries and time spent on the injured list). Ironically enough, Gaborik is currently listed as doubtful for tonight's game with a "lower body injury." The Rangers are emphatically stating that it is not a groin injury. In any event, Go Wild!

Time Flies

Wow. Has it really been a month and a half since my last sojourn into Looking California, Feeling Minnesota? That is a little disheartening, and I'm sure my readership has been thoroughly disappointed in my lack of output. The worst part about it all is that it was the last month BEFORE law school started again and I officially lost any semblance of a life that I once was clinging to, but perhaps this is exactly the reason I didn't add anything to LCFM during that time period, I was busy trying to make the most of what little freedom I had remaining and, let me tell you, it was quite the ride.

I don't even remember where we last left off, but over the last month there was wolves, Journey, Ventura County Fair, Huey (with his News), Concerts in the Park, Simpler Times, Denny's, Quakes, In-n-out, shopping carts, birthday celebration, Inland Empire brawl, Simpler Times (again), MBA presentations/finals, roomies, law school, election, bbq, birthday celebration (part II), and Tommy's. I think that about covers most of it. As you can see, it's been a wild ride. The moral of the story is I've got some pretty amazing friends and have had some pretty awesome opportunities for good times lately. Here's to hoping they keep on coming! Also, I'll really try to get some more new material on here before another month passes!

What's in a Name?

So, as everyone who happens upon this little site on the "Internets" knows, I go by the name of Topher. Topher is short for Christopher. I've been called Topher my entire life, the story I've been told it traces back to my mother's pregnancy when my father would tease her that "she was so big she was going to have twins, and name them Christina and Christopher and call them Tina and Topher." I'm actually the fourth generation "Chris-themed" name in my family. My great-grandfather was named Chris, his daughter (my grandmother) was named Christine, her son (my father) is named Chris and I'm a Jr.

I love the name Topher. It's me. I don't see anything strange about it at all, and a quick google search will show that it's actually catching on quite a bit, and yet I'm constantly having to re-pronounce it or explain it. Every year at school was always an adventure trying to explain "Topher" to new teachers who constantly wanted to revert to the comfortable "Chris" abbreviation. I even had one teacher who refused to call me "Topher" all year long because she thought I had said my name was "Toker." She finally called me Topher on the last day of school. I didn't see the humor. Just a few weeks ago as we made our way to Carp for the 4th of July celebration, we stopped at McDonald's for a quick lunch. While there my name got mispronounced at "Tayfer." Just the other day I received a letter which was addressed to "Tather."

I plan to keep the Topher love going as it gains in popularity. The thing that strikes me the most is that the very same people who are so thrown off by, "Topher" would have absolutely no problem calling Christina, "Tina."

I have no idea how many people are walking around this great planet giong by the name of Topher, but I guarantee it's growing. Although we may not be the biggest fans of his work Topher Grace is owed a debt of gratitude for increasing the exposure of the name.

The reason for this particular blog comes from Dale, who passed along this site earlier today, http://topherdavis.wordpress.com which is written by another person who shares my unique name. Apparently there is also a Topher Davis out there who is a musician.

The world had better watch out, because Topher's are coming to take over the world. Remember the name.

MLB Mustache of the Day

To kick off this new addition to Looking California, Feeling Minnesota who better to start with than the inspiration of it all: Clay Zavada, left-handed relief pitcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Clay is not only sporting an impressive 1.86 ERA through 21 games into this season, he also sports a magnificent handle-bar mustache.

Here's to you Clay! Keep up the good work!

Independence Day: SoCal Style

This past July 4th marked the 233rd birthday for the United States of America and it also marked my very first Independence Day away from Minnesota, and the first in 16 years away from Wade Stadium. Instead, I took off from Ontario on Thursday afternoon towards Thousand Oaks, where I was meeting Dale at his office before heading to dinner at Famous Dave's in Simi Village Valley where we were meeting Katie. Following another outstanding offering from Dave's it was off to Dale's place for a little decompressing before heading out to Dargan's in beautiful downtown Ventura. We were joined at Dargan's by Nick Grant (the cat can ball). All in all, a solid day.

Friday brought about a little homework in the morning for this guy before lunch in Ventura at the Busy Bee Cafe on Main Street followed by some random wanderings around Main Street including adventuring into an antique store featuring just about every random knick-knack you could think of. This was followed up by a stop by Dairy Queen it was back to the apartment for soem MLB Network and the start of the Angels game with some brews and some pizza. Then, it was off to Victoria Pub & Grill for a night of outrageous new people, a few pitchers of refreshing goodness, and a few "W's" on the dart board. This was all followed up by three breakfast jacks and a strawberry shake in the early morning hours before hitting the sack in preparation for Saturday.

Saturday brought about the holiday and it all started off with Mosh's arrival at the apartment and from there it was off to Carpinteria for some beach time with Grant and Kitty and the amazing family of Clark. It was football on the beach, some time in the ocean, some exploring and sand castle stomping. Then it was off to the pool at the condo for some good times in the water. Following a quick shower it was time to head out to Santa Barbara for some quick dinner and then to the beach for the fireworks show, which was a very nice show. Following a very entertaining walk back to the car (pics coming soon), it was off to State Street in Santa Barbara for a little night cap. So, we found a parking spot and turned the corner out of the ramp and saw a sign from above...we were off to Dargan's. After the ride back to Ventura we were all thoroughly gassed and it was time to shut it down.

Sunday morning meant packing up and heading back to Ontario with plenty of time to spare before having to turn in some a couple of assignment for the MBA program online and preparing for the next adventures in the life.

Goodbye Marian, Hello Martin

July 1st not only marked Canada Day and Mosh's Birthday, it also marked the beginning of NHL free agency and the end of an era in Minnesota right along with the dawning of a new.

Marian Gaborik, who was the first ever draft pick of the Minnesota Wild and was the lone remaining player from the Wild's Inaugural Season, signed a free agent contract with the New York Rangers.

Not long after the Wild filled the offensive void left by Gaborik by signing Martin Havlat to a six year deal. Last season for the Chicago Blackhawks, Havlat scored 29 goals and had 48 assists for a total of 77 points in 81 games played.

I'm looking forward to seeing what Havlat will do in Todd Richards system with Minnesota playing with Mikko Koivu, Brent Burns, Pierre Marc-Bouchard, and (hopefully soon) Saku Koivu (who is considering an offer from the Wild to join younger brother Mikko at The X).

Happy Canada Day!

Happy Canada Day everyone!

On July 1st, 1867, the British North America Act of 1867, which united Canada as a single country of four provinces.

I'd like to take some time to make sure to send a shout-out way up north to the beautiful city of Edmonton, Alberta and a good friend of both The DL from DL and Looking California, Feeling Minnesota, the Roomie.

To wrap up our quick little tribute to our friendly neighbors from the north here's a rendition of, what I think is, one of the greatest National Anthems in the world.



Also of note on this great July 1st, and an event that arguably may be bigger than Canada Day, it's Mosh's Birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOSH!!!

Home

Home. No matter where you go in the world, no matter how far the winds of time take you, no matter how long you're away, there's still absolutely nothing in the world like home.

It doesn't make you weak to say that you miss it and it doesn't mean that you're not happy where you are now, there's just always something about home.

Maybe I'm just missing it a little more than usual tonight, but that's ok. Maybe part of it is the fact that I don't know exactly when I'll be home again, right now it's looking like December making this the longest I'll ever have been away from home. All I do know, is the next time I'm back, and every time that I do go back, I cherish every second I'm there. Home.

27 Outs

It takes 27 outs in a Major League Baseball game to get a win. Unfortunately for Luis Castillo, Frankie Rodriguez and the New York Mets they only got 26 last night and then that happened.

The beauty of baseball; however, is that there is no rest for the weary and Los Mets will be back on the field this afternoon in the Bronx Beltway, er...Yankee Stadium with Luis back on the field in the leadoff spot and at second base. Go get 'em Luis.

And Then There Were Three

We are over a week into our finals period here and so far our 1L class has taken two of the five final exams. It all started last Tuesday for a Cinco de Mayo match-up against the Rule Against Perpetuities and second semester Property. Overall sentiment leaving that test....ouch. I have never in my life experienced such anxiety during an exam as I did during those two pressure packed hours, here's hoping it turns out alright.

Next up was Torts on Friday. This exam seemed to go a little more as planned, but there was still much to be included in the essay portion. All in all, it was a much better feeling coming out after those three hours.

Coming up next is Civil Procedure on Monday followed by Contracts on Thursday and finally Criminal Law on Saturday. Contracts is easily the most intimidating of these upcoming exams, but there is no pitcher batting in this lineup.

Also of note: The Finals Mustache is still going. Maybe by the end of the week it will be visible! Viva Finals Mustache!

Manny Being Manny?

If you would have asked me a week ago what the bigger long shot was; Mine That Bird, a 50-1 long shot the morning of the race, winning the Kentucky Derby running away, or Manny Ramirez testing positive for performance enhancing drugs and being suspended by Major League Baseball, I would have answered Manny was the biggest long shot in a heart beat. Sadly, this morning I was proven wrong, and in fact, both of these astonishing long shots have happened.

I'm not here to report the news of something that you've already heard more than enough of from every possible source, but I felt as though I should add something to the white noise that is Manny-related banter. For years I have been a huge Manny Ramirez fan. His swing is amazing, his ability to control the strike zone unmatched, his balance is unbelievable and all of these things are parts of the game that performance enhancing drugs will not affect and yet there is a very good chance that Manny's reputation will forever be tarnished, and for what?

The thing that surprises me most about this happening is the fact that any professional baseball player today, especially such a high profile player, would allow himself to even come close to testing positive. If news would have come out this morning that some unnamed source said they sold Manny something back in 1999 I wouldn't have even flinched. It was a different world then, for better or for worse. I grew up in a professional baseball clubhouse and I saw many things go on just because that's the way things were. I'm certainly not saying it was right, because it wasn't, but it is how it was and we can't deny it happened. I liked to think that we had moved past that, but unfortunately this great game keeps getting dragged through the mud. How does someone like Manny let himself test positive with the current state of drug testing in place? That boggles my mind. He had it all. Was it worth it?

When Manny comes back in early July after serving his 50 game suspension I have no doubt that he'll once again step up to the plate with his unbelievable balance and plate discipline and will take the outside pitch the other way and will deposit hanging sliders into the left field pavilion, there will always be the asterisk floating above his head and that's just too bad. Manny when you do come back, do what you do, have fun and keep smiling, and do it clean.

Finals, Round 2: "AND DOWN THE STRETCH THEY COME!"

In a few short days I will be tackling my second round of finals in law school. It all starts on Tuesday, May 5th at 5:00 PM with Property and wraps up on Saturday, May 16th sometime around 4:00 PM. Through that time I will be put through two hours of Property, three hours of Torts, three hours of Civil Procedure, three hours of Contracts, and three hours of Criminal Law. If 14 hours of closed book, cumulative, essay testing isn't enough to get you excited I don't know what is!

Anyways, I decided this would be a good enough time to throw out another update. Mixed in around the many study blocks (thanks, Prof. Klein!) there is plenty of things to occupy a study break these days. At the time of this writing the New York Mets are sitting at 10-12 after taking the first of a three game series against the hated Philadelphia Phillies on Friday in Philly. Big Pelf bounced back with a solid start tonight, but still isn't where the Mets would like him to be, but you can't really complain with his 3-0 record to date. Tomorrow, will be a bigger test as the Mets are sending Oliver Perez to the hill. Ollie has been absolutely terrible so far in 2009. There's just no way around it. He needs a quality start tomorrow in Philadelphia or he risks being dropped from the rotation, which is tough to swallow for the team that recently signed him to a three-year deal just a few short months ago. Ollie has amazing stuff and some days he is absolutely lights out. Sadly, he hasn't had one of those days yet in 2009. Here's hoping tomorrow is the day.

Also of note for Saturday, and what I probably consider the biggest sports event of the day, the 135th running of the Kentucky Derby will take place at 3 PM pacific at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. If this race didn't fall into the time of the year when I absolutely cannot afford to spare more than an hour of my time at various times throughout the day I would be on a plane to Louisville right now or at least making my way to Santa Anita for some amazing Derby Day festivities. As far as the actual race goes, I Want Revenge is currently sitting as the favorite at 3-1 odds, not far behind him are Dunkirk and Pioneerof the Nile who are both at 4-1. Friesan Fire is at 5-1. As far as my picks go, I haven't been able to put nearly as much time into handicapping as I would like to, but after quickly looking at the post positions, odds, jockeys and trainers of each horse I'm going to go ahead and throw out Friesan Fire to win, Pioneerof the Nile to place, and I Want Revenge to show. That's a 6, 16, 13 trifecta for those of you heading to the betting windows. If it ends up that way, I would like a cut though!

Since I last posted former Duluth Huskies pitcher Mark Melancon made his Major League debut for the New York Yankees. Melancon made his debut against the Boston Red Sox in Fenway Park last Sunday on ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball and proceeded to pitch two scoreless innings with one strikeout. He made his next appearance on Tuesday against the Detroit Tigers and threw another scoreless inning with another strikeout. Finally, tonight against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim of Orange County of California of the Pacific Time Zone of the United States of North America of the Western Hemisphere of Earth Melancon finally gave up the first run of his career throwing 1/3 of an inning allowing one earned run on one hit with a walk and a wild pitch. This will not be the norm for Melancon, his control and "stuff" is just too good. He'll be in the Major League's for a long time and it wouldn't surprise me one bit for him to eventually follow Mariano Rivera as the closer for the New York Yankees.

I must say that I should try to get on here and write a little more often. Even if nobody is reading it! It's refreshing to just flow and write about something other than the law every once in awhile. I set high goals for myself, but I wouldn't be surprised if I'm adding another post on here before the end of finals, but if I don't I'll most certianly get on at some point before heading to Minnesota for a week and a half.

Oh, one more thing. Tomorrow the St. Scholastica Saints will be retiring the #33 for the late John Baggs, easily the most successful baseball coach in the programs history. He built that program from essentially nothing to a Division-III powerhouse. The Saints are currently ranked #3 in the country which is amazing considering what those guys have been through. Coach Baggs passed away shortly before the season started from an incredibly aggressive cancer that was diagnosed in September, shortly after I moved out to California. I wish I could be at the Wade tomorrow for the ceremony, but I know that Coach Baggs is always with me. Thank you for what you did to help me with my career in baseball Coach. I'll never forget you. Hoka Hey!

Welcome

Well, this is the first post on my new blog. It's certainly a work in progress and will continue to be from now until it ceases to exist. I'm assuming this space will pretty much just be random musings from my always exciting day to day life or random sports opinions as I tend to talk about that quite a bit, especially with another baseball season fast approaching.

If you like what you see, or not at all, stick around. I hope we'll find something that is of interest to you. Thanks for stopping by!