2009: The Woodshed Is Coming

For all of you that have kept up with all of the happenings in the Texas Section and the USTA know that there things happening all around us--and not all of them good.

In 2009 (I don't want to reveal it before the new year) we will go into much detail about the inner workings of the Texas Section and the Texas Section Officials Committee. A lot of it you will find reassuring and a lot of it will cause you much consternation.

Its time for some of our leadership to head to the woodshed... The facts will be coming after the ball drops for 2009. Be sure to stay tuned...

Here are some of the topics for the new year:

* How do we select our Sectional Chairman.

* What is the role of the Officials Committee and what decisions do they really make.

* How do we actually select our "Umpire of the Year."

* What is the role of the secret ad hoc committee.

* Who is selected to be on this secret ad hoc committee.

* How do we deal with financial accusations concerning officials.

* How do we remove an official from being an instructor.

* How do we inform officials when they have been removed from a position of authority.

* What happens when our leadership fails to properly authorize an official's certification.

Feeling All Alone on New Years?

Don't feel bad--it could be worse. You could have these two as your best friends...

Models of Relaxation

Just taking a cue from these two fine young men as they give us a role model for pure relaxation... Gearing up for 2009 though and it looks like a great year. Here are some things that you will be seeing in the new year:

* A more open and transparent evaluation of our Texas section and its leadership.

* A detailed discusssion and explanation of how things are actually done behind closed doors in our section.

* More great pictures of Texas and Baylor. Very few of Tech though since they ruined the UT season this year.

* More action shots of officials during the ITA season. Its fixing to gear up and looks like a great one!

* Up to date bulletins on the 2009 schools and their dates since noone seems to be able to find the real dates.

* Guest posts by people that I find credible.

* Suggestions welcomed about how to make our Texas Section more believable and useful.

These are just a few things you can look forward to in the new year. I think we'll all have a great time.

A Sad Day in History: December 28, 2008

RIP

12-28-08

Relaxing & Looking Forward To The New Year

CARLOS MOYA is head over heels looking forward to 2009

Just imagine what the boys are thinking up for New Year's Eve...

GORAN is reflecting back on previous accomplishments and totally enjoying himself.

Reflecting On 2008

As we look back on 2008, I think we can all say it has been a good and fairly calm year. 2009 promises to be a really good one--but probably one with a few changes that may or may not be good.

Here are some of the highlights of 2008:

* Baylor men and women won the Big 12--again.

* The University of Texas men advanced to the NCAA finals and upheld the honor of the Big 12.

* The 2008 Chair Academy in Plano proved to be the best ever. Twenty participants finished the school and are all out officiating these days.

* Baylor University sponsored another collegiate training clinic under the direction of Chuck Scott. Overall, the clinic proved invaluable to those who attended.

* The Texas Section Officials Committee established yet another Grievance Committee (in spite of the fact that the current Grievance Committee was already in place).

* There were 19 officials schools conducted in Texas in 2008. Texas ranks #1 in the nation in the number of schools offered for officials.

* Bonnie Vona left the Texas Section office for greener pastures elsewhere.

* The USTA national office as well as much of our leadership in Texas sent word that they are reading our blog. I'm not too sure of their motives but I do want to welcome them to our blogging family. 2009 should be a year that they all enjoy!

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to all our friends and loved ones. I hope you have the best holiday ever...

Christmas Rush

Ever feel like the Christmas rush has you down? RELAX--it could always be worse...

Christmas For All Our Sooner Fans

SAM BRADFORD

2008 Heisman Trophy Winner

AP College Player of the Year--2008

Christmas Wishes--Bevo Style

And a very Merry Christmas to all you blogging friends!

Christmas Wishes

Now that we are close to the glorious morning when Santa appears its time to make our wish list for 2009. I'm sure you also have some to share so be sure to send them in.

1. A tie by Florida and OU and then a crushing win by UT so Texas can be the undisputed national champions.

2. That one of the Big 12 schools wins the NCAA National Tennis Championship in 2009.

3. That one of the Big 12 schools will finally build an indoor tennis facility.

4. That someone in the Texas Section office or in our officials leadership will get the gumption to stand up and deal openly and honestly with the financial malfeasance that is going on in one of our major cities in Texas.

5. That the new staff person that is hired to replace Bonnie Vona will not serve the Officials Committee and the Junior Tennis Council at the same time.

6. That Ginny James won't have to have any more operations.

7. That Susan Wertenberger will enjoy her retirement from being President of the MTOA.

8. That Vickie Wright have a complete recovery from her auto accident and that Tom forks over a ton of money for her new car.

9. That Myron Krueger's son, Mitch, wins Junior Wimbledon this year. We'll ask for a Grand Slam next year.

10. That Lee Ann Bain would move back to Texas and quit being our "bi-sectional official."

11. That Chuck Scott be elected "Umpire of the Year" in 2009.

12. That some Texas officials actually get to work the NCAA Tennis Championships in College Station this year.

13. That everyone who wants to go work the US Open will get invited this year.

14. That all those officials who go around the country calling lines will get a pay raise so they can actually make a living do what they love.

15. A little more openness and honesty from our Sectional leadership might be refreshing.

16. That everyone gets to see TCU's new purple courts.

17. That Cheryl Vinsant gets a huge supply of pencils for the new year.

18. That someone in the sectional office or sectional officials leadership learn how to publish a blog so we can know what is actually happening in our state.

19. That Bernie West gets to call lines for John McEnroe once again. Its worth the admission just to watch that encounter.

20. That Herb Taylor would be appointed to the Rules Committee so everyone can appreciate and enjoy his creational abilities.

21. That all of the Oklahoma officials get to come to Jim Lawson's house for Christmas dinner together. That should be a sight to behold!

22. That all those officials who are so busy climbing some "officials ladder" get a new aluminum ladder for Christmas. Wood ones tend to rot with use.

These are just a few of my special requests. Be sure to send your's in...

Pray For The Cowboys

All kidding about the Heisman aside, we need to pray diligently that the Lord will bless our beloved Cowboys tomorrow night. The Bible says that we "have not because we ask not" so let's all join together and ask the Lord to let us win... It will sure make for a better weekend and will also improve our prayer lives.

OU's Heisman & The Real McCoy

Even though he was deprived of his proper honor, we will nonetheless honor the one whom we believe should be this year's Heisman Trophy winner: THE INCOMPARABLE COLT MCCOY.

In deference though to our beloved Jim Lawson (of Oklahoma fame) and to be fair to all concerned, here is a picture of this year's Heisman Trophy winner: SAM BRADFORD.

More Lessons on Relaxation

These two could teach us a bit more about true relaxation...

How To Concentrate & Relax At The Same Time

I thought we would do a new series on "How To Concentrate On Your Tennis" and this picture of Juan Carlos Ferrero came into mind. The guy sure knows how to focus while he's relaxing...

UT: Big 12 Champions

THE University of Texas Longhorns

Remember to Pray For Vickie Wright

TOM & VICKIE WRIGHT

Just a little update to get you to pray for Vickie Wright. When she was driving to work this morning her car hit an icy patch on an overpass in Austin. Vickie is fine (just a little bruised) and at home now but the car has gone on to car heaven.

Let's all be sure to remember her in our prayers today...

A Texas Section Blog Sure Would Help

In today's world one of the most effective and prompt methods of answering questions is a BLOG. On a blog you can write the people in authority and ask very specific questions and they can publicly or privately answer your statements. Wouldn't that be great in our Texas Section?

In an average week our blog gets between 500-700 blog hits and numerous comments and emails requesting information about upcoming events and activities within our section. All this is well and good but wouldn't it be even more effective if someone in the Texas Section office or our Sectional Chairman would actually host a blog where we could ask questions and hear about things that are upcoming and happening around our state...

Just a little food for thought... (I have offered to set up a blog back in June for our Sectional Chairman and show him how to run it but the offer was declined.)

Follow The Money...

What a weird and wacky world we live in! Seems like there is graft and corruption everywhere you look and people wonder what we're supposed to do...

Just this week we discovered that the governor of Illinois is busy selling a Senate appointment to the highest bidder. Right here in Dallas the Dallas Independent School District has "lost" $84 million dollars and noone seems to know where it went or who did it. Wall Street needed $750 billion dollars to get out of their hole and now the auto makers need $25 billion to keep them solvent. Something is rotten in Denmark...

A federal prosecutor once told me that the best way to find the truth is to "FOLLOW THE MONEY" and it will usually lead you to the culprit. That seems like good advice...

Hopefully the governor will be impeached (since he won't resign) and end up in jail. Not sure what will happen at the DISD since they all blame someone else. I heard a great solution for the auto industry: take the $25 billion and buy $25 billion worth of cars from them. That way their sales would be up and then you could give the cars away and everyone would love you. Wonder how long it will take Hussein Obama to grab hold of this idea...

Now for our Texas Section situation. Seems that one of our own has been credibly accused of financial mismanagement--yet nothing is being done. When there is a credible accusation there needs to be a credible investigation and some credible action on the part of our leadership.

Perhaps its time for them to step up and "follow the money."

Christmas Season Thankfulness

US Soldier

In the midst of all our blessings in America perhaps we should take a moment to be especially thankful for all our soldiers who make all of this possible...

Update on Jimmy Connors

Just a little update on our glorious Jimmy... Here's his booking picture when he was arrested in California in November.

Seems like the star has lost his glimmer...

Changes Are Coming: USTA Texas Section Style

Well, now that we have elected Hussein Obama as our next President under the mantra of "change" its only appropriate that we are following the same course in the Texas Section. These changes affect you directly so be sure to take note...

Seems that the schedule for OFFICIALS SCHOOLS that was finalized and authorized and authenticized by our Sectional Chairman back in August is no longer in effect. All of the original schedule was planned with the coordinators and instructors so it took much work and planning.

The vast majority of the schools that were one day schools have now been changed to two day schools (I'm sure you will all love that), and those that were on Friday night and Saturday have been changed to Saturday and Sunday.

None of these changes have been finalized since the edict just came out but be sure to check the schedule on the Texas Section website in case it happens to be updated before you plan to attend your school. Since it probably won't ever be posted there, BE SURE to contact your local coordinator before your school date to be sure it is happening.

We have always tried to keep you updated on changes and information that directly affects you as a Texas official but I'm not sure we can keep up with this pace...

Among Our Officials Family

Kevin Foster, son Harrison, and Unfortunate Fish

Its always good to get great reports from people in our Texas officiating family--and here's a good one! Kevin and his son, Harrison, caught this monster fish and now Kevin is doing fishing charters on the lakes near Waco.

If you're interested in catching fish, be sure to call Kevin...

Getting Put In The Proverbial Dog House

For those of you who have a tendency to get put into the doghouse for things you have thought and done--here is a great pearl of wisdom from our own Ginny James down in Houston:

http://bewareofthedoghouse.com/video.aspx

I'll leave all the special thoughts up your own imaginations...

Getting The Boot on the Blogosphere

Getting Booted At First Baptist Church, Jacksonville, Florida

Just when I thought I had seen and heard of most everything then I discover something new and unheard of--and nowdays a lot of it comes over the internet...

http://fbcjaxwatchdog.blogspot.com/

Seems that First Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Florida has a "Discipline Committee" that bans church members who have been posting on a blog that deals with events in their church. Most of the people who have been "disciplined" posted anonymously so they must have gone to a great deal of trouble and difficulty to find out who they are.

Personally, I think everyone should sign their names when posting on a blog but that's not the issue here. The issue is that "big brother" is alive and well in America today and its already begun in our churches and government and even the USTA...

When we first began our blog it was called "ustaofficials.blogspot.com" and we were called and written by the USTA and told they would file suit against us if we did not change our name. Most of this came because a disgruntled female official in Houston called Rich Kaufman to complain but that's beside the point.

Since I didn't want to have a confrontation with the front office I gladly changed the name of our blog. Now it seems that attorneys in the USTA office read our blog to see if have "slandered" someone or just to check to see if a post is about anyone who chooses to file a grievance.

What a wild and wacky world we live in!!! However, the blog is here to stay so let's enjoy our time together.

The Professional German Shepherd

The one personality type that personifies professionalism and polish it is the German Shepherd. Here are his traits:

* Very professional in their appearance.
* Strong command of the rules of tennis and tennis etiquette.
* Natural leader and commands respect in a group.
* Gives a sense of security to those around them.
* Very protective of ethical values and morality.
* Makes for a strong friend and ally.
* Has no patience with backbiting and ineptitude among other officials.
* Very proficient in their job performance.
* Commands respect from parents, players, and coaches without being domineering.
* Usually tends to be a male and a Republican. Not concerned with social issues but with the "big picture" of things going on around him.

Sometimes this personality type can be difficult as you can see from the picture above. Here are some of the negative traits:

* Can sometimes give into self-adoration and self-promotion.

* Can be devastating if they are offended and do not react properly.

* Tends to be vindictive if they are confronted or offended.

* Wants to be in control at all times so can sometimes leads to problems in groups.

* Strong heterosexual leanings and manifestations among male officials. Very few of this type are found among female officials.

* Has no respect for people in authority who are lax in their job performance.

* Easily agitated if those around him are unethical or immoral.

Somebody Is Dropping The Ball

There is nothing more devastating in football than to have your team fumble and lose the ball--and there is nothing more devastating in life than to fumble away opportunities. Seems like we're seeing that on a regular basis here in Texas...

Here are some areas of concern that we hear about regularly:

* When you check the Texas Section Officials Site you notice there is nothing printed on the home page at all. Totally blank...

* When you check the Texas Section Officials Site for our "Officials Newsletters" you find the last one posted was summer 2006.

* Our certification schools begin in January, 2009, and yet we have received nothing from our leadership. I am still contacted weekly by someone wanting to know if and when and where they are going to have their schools.

* We have no developed state wide program to develop and further train our officials. The only two events that even begin to address this issue are the Chair Academy in Plano and the Grand Slam in College Station.

* We have no central source we can turn to for information about Texas officiating. There is no address given to be able to contact anyone.

* There is no state wide enlistment program being implemented or even being developed. Our numbers have been declining since Cheryl Jones resigned as Sectional Chairman and no great solutions in sight.

* We have no viable plan for keeping our current officials or seeking to reclaim those officials that we have lost.

Seems like we have some serious problems confronting officiating in Texas. Perhaps it is time to hear some reality from our leadership...

We would welcome your comments and suggestions about how to improve officiating here in Texas. Making things better and more effective should be everyone's goal...

Let us hear from you...

Our New Welfare State

Welcome to America! The land of the free, home of the brave, and the new home of the HANDOUT. Today the Ford Motor Company said they ONLY needed $9 billion dollars from the government--and of course the other automakers need at least $25 billion (and that is on top of the $25 billion they have already received). What a day of rejoicing in Washington D.C.

The sad part is that it extends from Wall Street (with their $750 billion bailout) to Main Street in all of our cities. I haven't seen anyone rushing in to make my car payment or my house payment... With this type of mentality I'm not so sure about the future of our country.

We even see tennis officials with this same mentality. They think that someone "owes" them a job or an assignment just because they are an official. Sorry, but it doesn't work that way. You have to work to earn respect and a spot at the table. Noone is "entitled" to a job, a position, or even an availability unless they have proven their worth or at least have been considered to be trained for these positions.

Well, that's my thought for the day. I guess you can tell I've been watching the news...

The Dreaded PIT BULL

There is probably not an animal that elicits more fear, disgust, and distrust that the pit bull--and sadly, we see many officials who exhibit those same personality traits far too often. Here we go:

* Tends to be a bully and very dominating in deeds and conversations.

* Strong Type A personality with all its strengths and weaknesses.

* Usually performs their duties as a referee. Can be a very hard taskmaster in this arena. Not open t discussion or various opinions on issues.

* Can be very loyal to their friends even though they are few and far between. Can be very engaging and personable when they desire acceptance.

* Usually involved in conflict with parents, coaches, and players. Very dominant in their officiating style.

* Hard to deal with when they are part of a team of officials.

* Usually a very authoritarian leader.

* Makes a great guard dog but not good as a date.

* Sexual preference tends to be heterosexual except in the case of females and when they are homosexual they tend to be dominant lesbians. (Again, this information comes from my vet friend and some personal experience.)

* This personality type is frequently manifested in higher levels of leadership in the tennis officiating world.

* When involved in a sexual relationship they tend to be very dominant and over-protective of their spouse or partner. Among males they tend to hide their homosexuality and flaunt their heterosexuality. Among females they tend to be very dominant and aggressive whether heterosexual or homosexual. Very few cross dressers are found among the pit bull types.

* Usually tends to make up rules or bluff when put in a contentious situation.

* Very difficult to deal with on a regular basis. Usually best to take a vacation when you are scheduled to work with them.