New Years Resolutions

It's that time of year again. Yes, it is that time of year when people reflect on the year that has passed them and once again start their list of resolutions for 2006.
I feel that this is a tradition that needs to be rethought. Why? For lots of reasons. First off, most people make a resolution and studies have shown that within 30 days, they are back to their old habits. Psychologists have shown that it takes up to 60 days to create a new behavior. That is why when someone goes to see a psychologist/counselor/shrink they do so for several months. These clinicians want to monitor someone's behavioral changes over the course of time because they know that someone can not change a habit or bahavior they have formed over the course of years in just a couple of days. People are not patient and give up too soon. They get frustrated when they do not see immediate results from their work and do not wait long enough to see the new behavior. This is most accute when people try to lost weight.
Second, why do people find it neccessary to make changes at the end of the year? Why don't we make changes to ourselves throughout the year, rather than use the excuse that it is the end of the year? I can only speak for myself and from my own personal experiencewhen I say that I work on my religious, spiritual, and physical sides everyday. I have my wife, family, and friends that watch out for me and let me know if I need to work on something. If I see that I need to work on a specific character defect or shortcoming, I do it now, not wait until the end of the year when I look back and realize how little I have done to change myself. I look back at the year and am proud of who I have become because I know that I spent even a small amount of time everyday working on myself.
Lastly, resolutions bring people up, then down or give people an excuse to try changing, then quit. They give people a false sense of hope that they are going to make their lives better, then when they don't succeed they become sad and sometimes depressed. Or even worse, they don't care. These people passively say" Aw well, it was worth a try" and just remain as they are without taking their giving-up seriously. I have seen it in my own life. Friends start a diet after the holidays, get real serious about it for a short time, then stop eating well or exercising. They start to look and feel good, then I see them a month or so later and they look like they did before and their attitudes are negative or they just don't seem to have that same positive energy that they had before they started the diet.
I would love to own a gym. I heard 0n tv that the biggest time of year that people diet and excercise is right after the holidays. The Today Show was saying that most people that make the resolution to lose weight or start and excercise program do so for a month, then get tired and give-up. Wouldn't that be great to own your own gym, selling 6 month memberships to people that are only going to come for a month, then not show-up anymore? Or raise your membership fees in January knowing that you are going to make a killing on people signing up after the holidays?
Those who know me know that I only talk the talk if I walk the walk, so this subject is one I can effectively submit my opinion on. I really do not mean to be so cynical. I am really NOT a cynical person, but seeing history repeat itself and watching tv shows lately where the topics have been New Years resolutions has got me thinking. Perhaps I should (insert sarcasm) make it a New Years Resolution not to take other making resolutions so seriously!

Where did THAT name come from?

For those of you who have been wondering, I got my website name (MarcusWelbyMD.blogspot.com) from the 70s tv series "Marcus Welby MD". I was young, maybe 6 or 7, when the show was on. From what I remember, the show followed an older doctor and some of the interesting adventures that came from his being a doctor that went to people's houses. For those of you who can clarify the true theme of the show, please educate me (and the rest of my loyal readers).
Over the years, I have been given lots of nicknames including "Mouse", "Butch", "Markster", "Marky Mark", "Circus", "Circus Marcus", and just plain "Marcus", to name a few. I will be happy to share the stories behind any of these name for those of you who wish to enquire, but a few people have called me "Marcus Welby" or "Marcus Welby MD". My martial arts instructor has nicknames for just about everyone in our school and calls me "Marcus Wellby".
Thus, that is the story behind my website name.

Hollywood Part II - Chevy Chase

I have spoken to a few people since I started this BLOG and a few have made some comments about my Brad and Angelina topic. The consensus was: "What were you thinking when you came up with that topic?"
OK, I will admit it wasn't the best topic, but it did generate the most comments of any topic I have started so far (today is Tuesday December 27)!!! Plus, I am not much of a Hollywood gossip person, but I do enjoy talking about stars lives because they are in the spotlight and we are all reminded that they get-up every morning and put their shoes on just like us.
So with that in mind, here is another "Hollywood Topic": Where the heck is Chevy Chase these days?
We all remember him from his days on Saturday Night Life and of course who better could have played Clark Griswald than he? The last I saw of him, his face had ballooned-up and he looked like he had put on 50 lbs. He was doing a commercial for some product and the ad was not in the least bit funny. The weight issue made him unrecognizable (I trully hardly recognized him) and the ad was an attempt at humor, but was not Chevy Chase humor.
He has had a great movie career including The National Lampoon Vacation series, Caddy Shack, The Three Amigos, the Fletch movies. Now adays, you hear nothing of him. He does not make the rounds on talk-shows and has not starred in any big rolls in awhile.
Can someone keep me posted as to what he has been up to? Am I missing something and alone in my feelings towards this great comedian's downslide?

My Aunt and Uncle - Jokes and All

Yesterday, we celebrated Christmas with my mom's side of the family. Her side consists of my Aunt Lil and my Uncle Bill along with my cousins Tony and Mary. The rest of the family all lives out on the West Coast in Washington. We met at my parents house along with all of my siblings and their kids. Needless to say it was a VERY busy, but memorable afternoon.
My aunt and uncle have got to be two of the most likeable people you will ever meet. They always have smiles on their faces and you would never know the hard lives they live. My uncle has been out of work for 2 years and all he has ever known his life is manufacturing. Needless to say, at 62, who is going to hire a man his age when in their eyes he is probable going to retire soon AND they can hire a young person who will work for less money? I don't know how they are making ends meet, but I know my mother and father have been very generous in trying to help them out.
Uncle Bill has had the worst luck of anyone I know. He has worked for 5 different companies and each time he has lost his job it has been because the plant he worked for closed. His work records are spotless as he always got to work early, left late, and never had a bad review. Now at 62, he has been forced to find a part-time job working for Catholic Charities where he will be paid just over minimum wage. I was able to find him a job, but unfortunately it was seasonal work and they laid-off 65% of their workforce once the season was over.
As I mentioned, Aunt Lil and Uncle Bill never complain about anything and just seem to get through whatever crisis is sent to them. Uncle Bill likes to tell these corny jokes, but you can't help but laugh at them because, well, Uncle Bill told them! Aunt Lil also has a tremendous sense-of-humor and is very good at telling stories. I love to listen to her tell one because she does not leave out any details, nor does she tell TOO MANY details. I think it is their humor that helps them so much during their times of trial.
I am sure we all know people like my Aunt and Uncle. They make me think different about my own life and remind me that life is too short to worry about small things. So many times I feel myself start to feel sorry for myself, then I think about the example they have set. As far as I am concerned, they are the true unsung heroes in this world.
Please feel free to share any similar stories about the quiet heroes in your life.

Merry Christmas

I will not be checking my BLOG for a few days, so since this will be my last post until after the upcoming holiday, I want to wish everyone a safe and blessed Christmas!

Sick Sexual Predators

I was watching the Today Show this morning and saw a disgusting piece on a young man from NY who was used by sexual predators to expose himself to them over the internet. The young man, who was 13 then and is now 18, was a loner of sorts who had very few friends and was very internet savy. He went to a chatroom to make some friends when some older men got in contact with him. He had an internet camcorder that allowed him to provide live footage of himself to anyone. The sick acts began when one man offered the youngster $50 to take his shirt off. Thinking that its no big deal because he takes his shirt off at the beach, he did so. Weeks of this eventually turned into him completely exposing himself to them, fully naked. He started doing this right under his own mother's roof, then one of the men flew to the boy's neighborhood and rented an apartment for the boy to conduct the acts in private. This continued because he would tell his mom that he was going over to a friend's house. He received thousands of dollars for his work and when asked where he got the money, he told his mom that it was the result of an internet company he startes, which he really did do before all of this sexual act stuff started. The Today Show did not say how this all finally came out into the open, but they did say that hundreds of men would watch this boy and the were all types of people: doctors, lawyers, TEACHERS, PEDIATRICIANS, to name a few!!! For those of you who do not know, I have a young daughter and when I hear things like this, it makes me so much more aware of some of the sickos that live in our world. While I can not control every action my daugher takes, I can be a better parent and try to set a good influence on her while becoming actively involved in her life. These men are just plain mentally sick! I pray so hard that nothing like this ever touches my family's life and that these men get help for their sickness.

Friendly Bloggers

I must humbly submit that it was not my idea to start blogging, but my friend John who sent me to his Blog. It was his site that inspired me to start this one. Thus, I encourage you to visit his BLOG and our friend Jim's (we call him "Jug") BLOGS as well:
John: http://www.ckramer316.blogspot.com/
Jug: http://jugheadisweird.blogspot.com/
As I hear of more, I will let you know.

Chicago Bandits

For those of you who are not aware, Chicago has its own professional Softball team called the Chicago Bandits. Last year, in their first year as a team, they went all the way to the League Championship. Softball is fast becoming a popular sport to watch in part due to the success and domination of the USA Women's team in the 2004 Summer Olympics. I had the opportunity today to attend the Media Day for the Chicago Bandits for my company as we are going to be sponsors of the Bandits. I was very impressed with the president of the team who I got to meet personally. Not only does he run the Bandits, but he also is the league president. For the few dollars people pay to go to game, I feel that they get a lot for the money. It is fun for all ages and is great for future softball players. These ladies are true roll models for young girls around the country. While the team is full of talent, their Captain, Jennie Finch, is very impressive as both an athlete and person. She signed a Softball for our office and was sincerely nice. With all of her accaalades (including playing on the USA Team in the Olympics), I have to say that she had a very humble demeanor. I highly recommend that this Summer you come out and support the Bandits (they play in Lisle, IL) if you are from the Chicago area or any AFP (American Fastpitch) team.

Richard Pryor - Funny Comedian

I was sad to hear of the death last week of Richard Pryor. He was a talented entertainer who met his fate due to his MS. If anyone saw pictures of him in his last few months, you could see just how much of a toll his disease took on him. I have some great memories of him being in movies like Stir Crazy, Silver Streak, Harlem Heat, and Brewster's Millions. I saw some of his stand-up routines which by today's standards were ok, but back when he conducted them in the 70s and 80s were considered controversial or pushing the envelope. He made me laugh at the rediculousness of our differences. Black, white, etc it doesn't matter...We are all in this together was the message I got out of it. I hope he is in heaven making everyone laugh as he did here on earth.

Randall - The Right Apprentice?

Last night, the Fourth Season of the Apprentice ended when Randall was hired as the new Apprentice over a very tough Rebecca. Both candidates made very good apprentice potential overcoming obstacles such as a broken ankle and the death of a grandmother. Their leadership skills were seen at their best in the final project when Randall had to overcome rain to run a celebrity Softball fundraiser and Rebecca had to find an MC at the last minute to host her comic fundraiser.

Is Randall the right choice? Did Trump make a good decision considering the calibre of both candidates? How about the surprising ending when Randall was asked by Trump if he should also hire Rebecca as an Apprentice and Randall said "No"?

I feel that Randall was a great choice. There are three things he had going for him: 1) He actually RAISED money at the fundraiser, 2) He has a few more years experience than Rebecca, and 3) He had a 3-0 record as a PM versus Rebecca's 1-2 record. Rebecca lead with poise and confidence in the final project, but did not get money from the people that attended the event. Yes it is true that Randall did not have a complete PLAN B for the final project, but he still pulled it off and being an intelligent person, his mistake is something he will learn from and make sure that working for Trump that he does not repeat.

As far as Randall's comments about not hiring Rebecca, I think his reasoning was sound when he said "this was the Apprentice, not the Apprenti". Trump was to hire ONE person, not two. Yes, he is the boss and could always have hired both, but that was a decision for HIM to make, not Randall. Also, Trump could have heeded Randall's thoughts and STILL have hired Rebecca...he did not have to outright listen to him and not hire her. Even if it was "egotistical" on Randall's part to "not share the spotlight", it was afterall HIS spotlight. Trump had just hired HIM, not Rebecca. Lastly, we can speculate all we want to whether Rebecca would have hired Randall if she had been hired and asked the same question, but the truth is is that we will never know.

Christmas, Hannakuh - Being PC around the Holidays

How PC (Politically Correct) have we really become in this country? I recently heard that retails stores are now calling Christmas Trees Holiday Trees. Aw come on, I mean, PLEASE! I know that Jewish people do not buy Christmas trees because the tree is part of the Christmas tradition, not the Jewish tradition. They might still buy one, because they like the look of it or just simply want to encorporate that part into their own tradition, but the tree has been called a Christmas Tree for years. To call it a Holiday Tree infers that all religious people embrace the tree in their traditions. Also, it takes the Christmas out of the name where it was Christians who started the tradition. I also heard in the news that Target and other retailers are not allowing their employees to say "Merry Christmas" to shoppers because it has a religious connotation to it. I have been saying Merry Christmas to people since I was born and have said it to a few Jewish people I know. Not one has ever been insulted by my saying it. In one situation, he was Jewish and I did not know it. I quickly said "Happy Hannukuh" to him and he replied "Thanks, but don't worry about it". Should we stop saying "God Bless You" or "Bless You" when someone sneezes? There is an atheist out there who is trying to get "one nation under God" eliminated from our Pledge Allegiance and I have heard he is working on getting "In God We Trust" off of our money. Whether you agree or disagree with his actions, write your Senators and Congreeman and let them know how you feel. I have many times and each time I feel more like part of this great democracy where my voice is heard. Let's take back Christmas!

King Kong - Worth All the Hype?

I have not seen the new King Kong, but being a huge movie-goer, it really looks good! I liked the one from the 70s with Jeff Daniels and from what I see of this one by Peter Jackson, it looks like he did a good job of keeping the romantic story line while incorporating some action scenes. I really like that in this version Kong fights a dinosaur. In the 70s version, he fights a giant snake which wasn't a bad idea either. Between the Lord of the Rings series and now King Kong, Jackson is fast becoming the new Steven Spielberg of the 2000s.
If anyone has seen it, PLEASE share your comments. Even if you haven't seen it, share your thoughts on it.

Brad and Angelina - Old News?

Here's a little something for you Hollywood gossipers out there: are Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt really commiting to a long-term relationship now that there is talk about Brad adopting kid(s) with Jolie?
Wow, a few months ago they were just friends, now adoption?

Da Bears - Orton vs. Grossman

With the Bears coming off a hard loss against the Pittsburgh Steelers, the questions still stands: Should Orton be yanked for Grossman or should the team stay with Orton?

In my opinion, Rex Grossman had a great opportunity to lead this team. He already has some NFL experience as a starting QB. This would be helpful to the team. However, Orton has filled in as a rookie and the team has a 9-4 record with Orton as QB. The Offense has adjusted to Orton's style, which could be a liability, but nevertheless he is only a rookie. Putting in Grossman NOW I think is too little too late. If it had been say 2-3 weeks ago, I would say the offense would have a good chance to make the adjustment, but with only a couple of weeks until the playoffs, not a good time. Yes, his stats are not good, but the Defense has made-up for what the Offense is lacked. Let's face it, Football is 65% Defense and 35% Offense. An Offense can only score, but the Defense can both hold an opponent's field position AND score. The Baltimore Ravens are a classic example of a team with a great Defense that won the Super Bowl. I say let Orton complete one full season and get his experience as a starting QB. Then wait until training camp and pre-season to evaluate who will be the starting QB and future for the Bears.

Welcome All

Welcome to my own personal BLOG! I am so new to this whole Internet blogging thing. Heck, I am probable the only male over 30 who does not own an iPod, much less understand what one is, so bare with me as I try to make this a pleasant experience and not waste your time in coming here.
I am open to ideas, so please e-mail me with some ideas for topic starters. Politics, Hollywood News...almost anything is open for discussion, within reason. However, if you want to talk about sex, go to a porn website, there are PLENTY of those. If you want to share your deepest secrets, PLEASE go see a psychologist...that is not why I created this site.
Thanks for stopping-by...come back often!