Hanging with Rich

Can the Pope's visit make America a kinder, gentler place? The news has been loaded with violent stories recently. I don't want to read about another child that was senselessly killed. I don't want to read about another senseless school shooting. I don't want to read about another police officer that was senselessly shot on duty. The key word here is senseless. America has become a more violent place. But has America also become a meaner place? Road rage has become a common event. It's not uncommon to overhear in a store somebody being rude with another party or to store personnel. In national politics the loyal opposition has turned into lying morons. Internet forums are an interesting place. You can post your opinion on anything. But prepare to be attacked by those that don't happen to agree. Back in the day, taking your family to join a crowd at a sporting event was a great idea. The worst thing that could happen would be if you were sitting next to som

Western New York is my new home away from home.... . You never really know how a suggestion to someone can affect your life. In what seems like a long, long time ago, my daughter was doing the college search thing. She was interested in biology, and was looking for a small school that was a "Goldilocks" distance away from home. (Not too close, not too far). After a search of the Princeton Review, I came up with Niagara University in Niagara Falls, New York. All I really knew about NU was that Calvin Murphy played there. (BTW, he's still the shortest man in the Basketball Hall of Fame.) Kristina and me enjoying ourselves at the Avett Brothers concert. Long story short, she went there, loved it, and graduated with honors. She wound up finding a job and living in Buffalo. She is now also working on a graduate degree at the University of Buffalo. As a by-product, I have and will continue to visit the area frequently. I have become fluent in many things WNY, (that'

The Night Ride: Wet, dark, and cold. Did I say wet?.... As some of you know, I started riding a bike this year. Well, I didn't just start. Let's say I un-retired from 2-wheeled riding after a break of around 30 years. I never liked running. My wife did long power walks. But I felt the need for speed. I shopped around and got a great bike by Specialized. (My wife probably thinks it's too great). I started this summer without much confidence, but gradually built strength and endurance. Now, I love it. I find riding is a great way to enjoy the outdoors, clear the mind, and do a workout all at the same time. Greater Cleveland has developed such a great park and trail system that I never get bored. But except for rare occasions, I have been riding alone. That changed this weekend. A scene from last years Night Ride. An organization called NEOCycle put on a great cycling festival this weekend. The idea was outstanding. There were a series of bike rides/races, with the

2015 Cleveland Browns: hope or nope?.... When the calendar changes from August to September a guys mind is on two things. Football is one of them. (The other is up to the readers discretion.) I can still hear the voice of John Facenda in some old NFL Film saying something like, "The golden autumn skies welcome our local warriors to the gridiron again." Something like that. Our local warriors happen to be the Cleveland Browns 2.0. They have been the most consistent NFL franchise of recent history. Consistently bad. It's hard to imagine them worse if they had tried. This was due to a number of unfortunate circumstances. Bad ownership - people that were successful in other businesses, or lucky with their genetics. Bad decisions by these owners on coaching. Poor personnel and drafting decisions. Also, a seemingly acute case of self importance by these executives. In 2015 we have an owner that, while investigated by the Justice Department, was never indited. He d