Squish.Us

Joey’s U12 boys team from Bishop competed in the 9v9 division of the Comstock Shootout soccer tournament this weekend, where they lost in the semi-final match against the Davis Demons.  They began their tournament with a tough loss against the Davis Voodoo, 4-3.  Bishop had many chances, but their defense was a bit leaky, and  conceded far too many opportunities for a good team like Davis.

Our next round was a must-win against the PHMSA Adrenaline (from Pleasant Hill/Martinez in the San Francisco bay area).  The Adrenaline had already beaten the team Bishop had just lost to (the Davis Voodoo) by 3-1, so Bishop had their work cut out.  But, the Bishop boys really stepped up the pressure, and scored on every opportunity.  I must say, the PHMSA coaches were a bit smug to the Bishop coaches before the game, perhaps thinking Bishop would be a walkover since they had beaten the Davis Demons, and they knew we lost to Davis earlier in the day.  But Bishop’s defense cleared very well, and Elijah Alexander and Jose Mendez were standouts in the midfield, winning just about every ball.  Joey Griego and Chris Molina both scored easily, with amazing footwork and through balls from the midfield.  The final score was 6-1, in favor of Bishop.  So, Bishop advanced to the semi-final match on points, having beaten PHMSA Adrenaline by more goals than the Adrenaline had beaten the Davis Voodoo.

The semi-final match was at 1:30 on Sunday against another Davis team (the Davis Demons), and Bishop played quite well.  Joey scored early, and by halftime, Bishop was winning the match 3-0.  That’s when the Bishop defense began to falter.  Our midfield play collapsed, and the Demons capitalized on our mistakes.  In fact, they brought the score even early in the 4th quarter of play.  Down 4-3 late in the match, Chris Molina brought Bishop back from the brink by scoring in the final minute of the match to equalize, 4-4.

The game was then decided on penalty kicks.  Our keeper, Daniel Martinez, kicked first, and scored.  Then came Elijah Alexander, who scored, then Nathaniel Pratt, who missed, Chris Molina, who missed, and then it was Joey’s turn.  Daniel had saved one of the kicks from Davis, so Joey had to score in order to keep Bishop in the round.  He kicked, and made it!  But, he didn’t wait for the referee to whistle first, so he had to take it again.  He kicked it *again* and missed, but hadn’t waited for the whistle again, so it was called back.  On the third try, he waited for the whistle, but missed his shot, and Davis Demons advanced to the final, against another Davis team (the Davis Rebels).

However, it was a great tournament for our boys.  They played very well, and had to overcome some adversity, and showed real character to make it to the semi-final match after the tough loss in the first round.  Joey scored a ton of goals (I lost count – 5 or 6?), and got compliments from the parents of every team we faced.  It was a little embarrassing, as many parents had comments like, “Wow, who is *that* kid?  He’s amazing!”  He’s been working on his foot skill to get past defenders, and it showed.  He didn’t face a single defender that he couldn’t get past easily.

I took a lot of sequence pictures, so click on the photos to view the full gallery of pics from the tournament.  Unfortunately, I had to leave to refereee another semi-final, so I actually missed the tying final goal, and the subsequent penalty kick shootout, so there are no pictures of that.

Joe Griego

Playhouse 395‘s production of Andrew Lloyd Weber’s musical “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” just finished its three-week run at the Dorothy Joseph auditorium in Bishop, and it was a wonderful success.  Gracie was in it, of course, and the production itself was the most professional, with the best performances yet put on stage by the company.

It was a magnificent show, with great dancing, fantastic singing, and all kinds of surprising technical effects.  It’s truly amazing how much local talent there is right here in Bishop to put on such a show.  The music was played live by Dan Daugherty and a talented pool of musicians.

The lead was played by none other than one of Joey’s soccer coaches and high school teacher Jeff Pratt.  Gracie was in the twenty-five person children’s choir.  The songs were so catchy I keep humming them in my head, and I can’t stop!  Go Go Joe!

Anyway, it was the best production they’ve done, and I hope they continue to put on great shows and encourage the arts right here in Bishop, California.  Congratulations to Gracie, and *everyone* who volunteered for Playhouse 395.  It was just the best.  Thank you!

Joe Griego

The Bishop U12 boys AYSO select team traveled to the Lancaster National Soccer Center in Lancaster, CA for the Quartz Hill Shootout soccer tournament over the weekend. We weren’t sure what to expect, as we haven’t played any big teams from Southern California before.

It turned out that we had the most difficult draw in the tournament!  The first team we played was from San Fernando Valley.  We lost that one 2-1, but played quite well.  Jerrod Dossey scored in that one from an excellent strike fed by Elijah Alexander.  The second match was against Downey, and we lost 3-1.  We conceded two goals in the last quarter, having been beaten by fast breaks.  Joey scored in that one from a great strike outside the penalty area that caught the keeper by surprise.  The last qualifying match was against Valencia, and we tied 1-1, on a penalty kick by Elijah Alexander in the final minute of the match.  Every other team in our flight failed to win a match, so we advanced to the medal round on goal difference.

We met Valencia again in the 3rd place medal match.  This time, we played much better, defeating Valencia 2-1 to capture 3rd place in our division.  So guess who the 1st and 2nd place teams were?  San Fernando Valley and Downey – the two teams we had to play in qualifying.  So our qualifications were the toughest draw, but it was a good experience for our boys.

None of the teams we played exhibited the tactical skill and touch of the Bishop boys.  Of course, I’m biased, but every team we saw only played the long-ball strategy – that is, they sent their biggest, fastest boys up front and kept booting the ball forward hoping to catch our defenders off guard.  This will work at the youth level, but without teaching the touch and foot skills that they’ll need at higher levels of play, they will never get better.  I was gratified to see that as our boys grow and catch up size-wise to other regions, they will have superior foot skill and tactical ability.  It was a good experience which validated the strategy of Bishop soccer to develop players, rather than concentrate solely on winning matches.  Bishop boys play better tactical soccer than any teams we saw at Quartz Hill, so that was fun to see.

Click on the photo above to see the photo gallery from the Quartz Hill Shootout tournament.

Joe Griego

Gracie is nine years old today. It hardly seems that long ago. She had a fairy-themed birthday party on Saturday, and you can click on the photo to view the whole gallery. We had a house full of fairy girls, and while it was chaotic, it was also pretty fun. The girls created their own fairy masks, played pin-the-wings-on-the-fairy, ate cake and ice cream, and ran around the house squealing. Mochi *loved* chasing after the girls, and nipping at their fairy dresses.

Our little baby Gracie will be old enough to drive in seven years, can vote in nine more years, and will graduate high school in 2018. Hard to imagine, huh? Anyway, enjoy the photos.

Joe Griego

The Griego family has just purchased a new car! It’s the first new vehicle we’ve ever purchased, so I’m a bit nervous about it. It cost us $22,000 out the door, which sure is a lot of money. We *almost* bought a 2006 Ford Escape hybrid down in Ridgecrest, but when we went back to the dealer to make an offer, they had closed up! We took that as a sign, so we came back to Bishop to see what was available locally.  We ended up buying a Honda CR-V, LX.  The color is “green-tea metallic,” which both Karen and I liked.  The interior is beige, so I’m a little worried about seeing a lot of stains.  I’m sure we’ll have our share, between the kids and the dog.  It’s nothing super fancy, but I like the all wheel drive for coming into Mammoth on storm days, without having to chain up.  That’ll be nice.

We really liked a 2007 Toyota Rav4 that was here in Bishop, but it had about 29,000 miles, and was only about a thousand dollars less than a new Honda CR-V. So, we went for the new vehicle.

It should be plenty big enough for us, the kids, and our dog – especially for our out-of-town trips for soccer tournament, swim meets, and such.

Joe Griego

Victoria Lynn Bauer (nee Morris) died at 4:23pm, on Dec 31, 2008.  She died in an automobile accident, driving the wrong way on Highway 78 near Ocotillo, California.  Her birthday is October 15th.  I’m not sure why I remember that, exactly.  It’s just one of those odd bits of information that gets stuck into your memory, and just sits there, unused, collecting dust, but somehow not fading away as so many memories do.  In my memory, she’ll always be a pretty blonde girl.  She was  eighteen or so years old the last time we spoke.  It was on my birthday, a year after I graduated high school.  We dated a little at the end of my senior year, and then after several months went by, we didn’t anymore.  She wanted to date other guys, and when a girl says something like that to you, it’s not as if there’s a choice to be made.  You can’t really say, “Well, I’d prefer if you didn’t, please.”  I suppose you can, but it seems a bit of a wasted effort, to be honest.  So, she dated other guys, and we didn’t date anymore.  I was sad for a while, and life just kept on happening, and eventually I wasn’t, anymore.  I went to community college, then moved away to San Francisco to attend university, and she was going to Cal State Fullerton, and with no reason to keep in touch, we didn’t.  That went on for twenty five more years or so, and here we are, and now she’s dead and gone.

I heard her parents passed away a few years after high school.  Her mom spoke Swedish, was a bit overweight, and was always pretty friendly to me.  Her dad was stern, or at least pretended to be when I was around.  I remember the first time Vicki and I went on a date, he asked what my plans for the future were.  I didn’t really have any, as I was seventeen and hadn’t given the matter much thought.  So, I mentioned that I was considering a career selling heroin.  I don’t know why I said it, but there it was; out of my mouth and into her dad’s ears.  In my head, I’m sure I thought it sounded just cavalier enough, and projected the calm confidence of a young man who was so intelligent and resourceful that he couldn’t be bothered with bourgeois concerns of income and stability.  But I’m pretty sure I just sounded like an asshole.  He let her go out with me anyway.  What can a father do, except hope his daughter makes good decisions?  We made mostly good decisions, and at least three bad ones, which, I think, is a pretty good average for seventeen.

Anyway, after we stopped dating, I did see her again.  As I mentioned, it was my birthday.  I actually can’t remember why I ended up at her house.  She said she had a present for me or something like that, and so I went.  It was her parents’ house on Lambert Circle there in Garden Grove.  They had this huge old green Suburban parked out front all the time, and I sat on the bumper, and we talked for a short while.  I was still mad about the whole her wanting to date other guys thing even though it was months ago, and I probably should have gotten over it, but I hadn’t, so I don’t remember saying much.  I remember wondering why she even wanted to talk to me, if she wanted to date other guys, and then she kissed me – right on the lips.  It wasn’t one of those thanks-for-coming-by-it-was-good-to-see-you-again kisses.  It felt like a real honest-to-goodness hold me in your arms, close your eyes and tilt your head kind of kiss.  It caught me by surprise.  I suppose I’m easily surprised, in hindsight.  I was briefly happy, as most young men would be when a pretty girl kisses them, and then got mad again when I remembered the dating other guys thing, so I said thanks, and then told her I had to go, and then I left, and that was the last time I saw Vicki Morris.

I have a picture her father gave me while we were still dating.  He was really into photography, and had his own darkroom in his garage.  I was  impressed, as he developed color prints on his own enlarger right there in his garage.  It was a pretty professional set-up.  Anyway, he took Vicki on a backpacking trip to the Minarets, here in Mammoth Lakes, where I now work.  It was their last chance for a father and daughter backpacking trip, he said.  I remember that I didn’t really know where the Minarets were, but in that picture, they’re beautiful.  She’s sitting down, not quite looking into the camera.  There’s a lake sparkling behind her, her face framed by a glowing halo of platinum blonde hair.  She had sort of prominent front teeth that made for a big smile – she wasn’t buck-toothed, but when she smiled and talked, when her upper lip met her lower lip, it made the tip of her nose bob up and down.  It was cute.  She was forty-three years old when she died last week, and so she probably didn’t look much like that anymore.  But, that’s Vicki Morris, now.  She sits beside that lake in the Minarets, smiling to her father, just on the other side of that camera.

Joe Griego

My sister Rose and her partner Kim came to visit us this week, and we had a blast!  We celebrated a “second Christmas” and the kids got to open more presents, so that was fun.  Rose took the kids sledding on Tuesday, and then she dropped by and we went to lunch afterwards.  Click on the pics to see the gallery of pics from their visit.

There are also pics of the kids opening presents and such.  Joey got a goofy lucha libre mask, some Techdecks, and remote control helicopters that you can battle!  Gracie got some nice clothes and a wonderful scooter for her American Girl doll.  I sure do miss having Rose around – I wish she and Kim lived a lot closer…sigh.  It was great to see them, though.

Joe Griego

We had a beautiful white Christmas this year in Bishop.  The kids had some trouble sleeping last night, but they eventually hit the sack, giving Santa a chance to put some presents under the tree.  Joey and Gracie didn’t get us up *too* early.  We probably ended up getting up for presents about 7 o’clock, which isn’t too bad, I suppose.  It was snowing pretty hard most of the morning.  We went for a walk with Mochi about noon-ish, and after we got back, it started snowing again.

We had a wonderful Christmas morning, and the kids had a blast.  Gracie loved her Nintendo DS (with Nintendogs game), and Joey loved the Adidas Euro 2008 Championship match ball and the Leatherman Skeletool he got from his Grandpa.

I hope you had as nice a Christmas morning as we had here in Bishop.  The snow is slowly falling, the fire is warm, and our family is healthy, happy, and together.  (Click on the photo to view the gallery of Christmas morning photos)

Merry Christmas, everyone.

Joe Griego

So Gracie sang tonight at the Christmas Eve service at First United Methodist here in Bishop.  She sang beautifully, and looked awfully cute, too.  Gracie sang “The Advent Song” and it went quite well, I think.  She started off a little soft, but was belting it out by the end.

The Lanane family also sang, and Diana Lanane did a wonderful solo performance of “Oh Holy Night.”  Click on the picture to see the gallery of pics.

Merry Christmas!

Joe Griego

SACRAMENTO, CA—Activists on both sides of the gay marriage debate were shocked this November, when a typographical error in California’s Proposition 8 changed the state constitution to restrict marriage to a union between “one man and one wolfman,” instantly nullifying every marriage except those comprised of an adult male and his lycanthrope partner. “The people of California made their voices heard today, and reaffirmed our age-old belief that the only union sanctioned in God’s eyes is the union between a man and another man possessed by an ungodly lupine curse,” state Sen. Tim McClintock said at a hastily organized rally celebrating passage of the new law. But opponents, including Bakersfield resident Patricia Millard—who is now legally banned from marrying her boyfriend, a human, non-wolfman male—claim it infringes on their civil liberties. “I love James just as much as a wolfman loves his husband,” Millard said. “We deserve the same rights as any horrifying mythical abomination.” On the heels of the historic typo, voters in Utah passed a similar referendum a week later, defining marriage as between one man and 23 wolfmen.

Yes, we love The Onion.

Joe Griego