Scott's Thoughts

                                                                                                             Brain Sharpeners      As more and more attention is paid to the most effective ways to improve cognitive brain function, let’s look at the often ignored factor in the brain function equation .  Namely, food. We are bombarded from all sides with information regarding how the food we eat impacts our health. Radio, TV, movies, and magazines devote a great deal of time extolling the virtue of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. What Brain is the common denominator? They all focus [SS2]   on the effects of food on the body. It just makes sense foods impact our brains, too . ...

Today is a bittersweet day for Royals fans. Their game today with the Diamondbacks most likely marks the end of an era. After today, our championship core will go their separate ways, but before they do, I wanted to take an opportunity to thank them for all they've done. It really started in 2010, when Zack Greinke publicly declared he didn't want to wait around for Kansas City to become relevant in a few years, he wanted to win NOW. At this point, after winning the Cy Young in '09, Greinke had posted a 10-14 record with a 4.17 ERA in 2010. GM Dayton Moore started putting out some feelers and on Dec. 20th pulled off the most successful trade in Royals' history. The Royals sent Yuniesky Betancourt, Greinke, and cash to the Milwaukee Brewers for Alcides Escobar, Lorenzo Cain, Jeremy Jeffress, and top minor league pitching prospect, Jake Odorizzi. Meanwhile, Greinke, after posting a WAR of 10.2 in 2009, followed it up by not posting a WAR above 4.2 again until 2015. I...

Small Ball Today, as my lovely wife and I head to Lamoni, Iowa to see our daughter cheer at Graceland University's football game, it occurs to me that I am grateful for small college football. My son has been in the marching band at K-State for three years and he, along with the other 400 in the “Wildcat Pride” band entertain the crowd at every home football game. Traci and I thoroughly enjoy going to Manhattan and cheering on the 'Cats. Tailgating, 65,000 rabid fans, usually national TV. Pretty exciting stuff. But, of course, it comes with a price, both monetarily, and hassle-wise. $20 to park a mile  away, $40 and up ticket prices, "big league" concession prices, etc. Great fun, but definitely a "whole deal." Graceland, on the other hand? Free parking 100 feet from the entrance, free admission (if my daughter remembers to put us on the list!), and some guy named Steve cooking $3 burgers at the snack shack. No giant crowds, no national TV, nobody ...