How to Survive the Family Football Game on Thanksgiving

"My Dad actually wears a collared shirt too when he plays football."

H. Armstrong Roberts, Getty Images

Thanksgiving is by far my favorite holiday. Here are a few of the things that make it so great:

1) Watching The Mouse in the Mayflower
2) It can get you 2 1/2 days off from work if you leave early on Weds--a 4+ day long weekend!
3) The sweet potatoes. Even if I do have to skim the marshmallows off the top.
4) Seeing all my old friends from high school
5) FOOTBALL

I clearly saved the best part for last on my list. My home team the Philadelphia Eagles are actually playing on Thanksgiving day, but that's not what I'm talking about. Frankly I'm so disgusted with their play and management this year that I'm foregoing watching the game. The football I'm talking about is the game I get to play in with my friends and family...our annual "Turkey Bowl."

While these games are the stuff memories are made of, things can also go terribly wrong. It can be downright dangerous out there. Think about it. The game invites people of all ages and skill levels. You've got baby boomers lining up against their kids with wives watching and little grand-kids running around. So everyone is out there moving at completely different speeds and there are distractions everywhere along the sidelines. Inevitably somebody gets in the way and then, crunch, you've pulled a hammy.

It used to be the old-timers who got hurt. But last year my brother, a particularly fit young guy, jammed his finger catching one of the three touchdowns and two interceptions he had in the game. And while he really won it for us, he ended up needing several surgeries to get his finger back to the right place. The lesson here is not to think you're immune just because you're athletic or young. It can happen to anyone.

This is something I worried about even before my brother got injured. It's always a good idea to go into these events prepared so you can minimize your chances of getting hurt. A few years back I produced a story on avoiding injuries for Day to Day and learned some great tips from Shawn Rassman, a former Assistant Physican for the New York Jets.

Rassman says the best thing you can do is to warm up, by stretching out and getting prepared physically before the game. So maybe park at the far end of the parking lot and jog over to the field. A few wind sprints might not be a bad idea either.

Rassman also suggests having cold packs or ice on hand in case someone gets a muscle strain. Apparently, this is one of the most common injuries suffered during pickup football games. Okay, so maybe head concussions and torn ACLs are less likely but I still think it's a good idea to be ready.

I'm excited to suit up this Thursday despite the possibility of getting hurt, and here's why: it's partly because it's a holiday tradition, and partly because I enjoy seeing everyone from the old neighborhood. And all that running around also makes me feel a little less guilty about the big Thanksgiving dinner I'm about to devour.

This year I'm hoping to beat my brother's record of most touchdowns scored in a single game. And yes, I'm bringing along an extra ice pack just in case things don't turn out as I plan. Happy Thanksgiving. Have fun and be safe out there.

5:53 PM ET | 11-26-2008 | permalink

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Saying Merry Christmas to a Jew...WWRD?

Even though it's not quite Black Friday just yet, the holiday spirit is already creeping up on us (albeit in a slightly more muted way this year given the economic downturn). What's not getting any quieter though is the "Merry Christmas" vs. "Happy Holiday" controversy. The Colorado Springs, CO based organization Focus on the Family has created its second annual list of retailers which fall into one of three categories, "Christmas-friendly", "Christmas-negligent", or "Christmas-offensive". Placement depends how much a particular retailer uses the phrase "Merry Christmas" instead of "Happy Holidays" in their promotions and catalogs. In response, Ed Stein of Rocky Mountain News came up with this snarky little postcard.

As an aside, isn't it somewhat ironic that Neiman Marcus made the Christmas-friendly list? I point this out because the Marcus family helped start one of the largest synagogues in the Southwest. But I digress.

As a Jewish American I long ago came to terms with the idea of being a religious minority and recognize that if a private business wants to cater to the majority of the population, then that's their right. I don't see any Christian shoppers getting offended when a grocery stores puts up "Happy Passover" signs up next to their matzah display (I realize this is not a very good comparison of scale but the idea is still relevant). I personally have no problem with Christmas trees, decorations, signs, or even the music (when played in moderation). My general feeling is that if people are making an effort to be nicer and happier than that's a good thing.

But that's not to say I agree with the tactics of Focus on the Family either. While a given retailer who advertises "Merry Christmas" is choosing to cater to their Christian customers, those who use the more inclusive phrase "Happy Holiday" are also making a choice. They're choosing to recognize that some of their customers celebrate a holiday other than Christmas. If retailers have a problem being too generic they could just say everything and have banners for multiple holidays. Seems like a good compromise.

There's one thing about the Holiday Season that does get me worked up however. It's when people tell me directly to have a "Merry Christmas." Whether intended or not, it feels like they're assuming I'm Christian--it's almost as if they're saying, "How could you not be Christian?"

Continue reading "Saying Merry Christmas to a Jew...WWRD?" »

3:00 PM ET | 11-25-2008 | permalink

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What Would Rob Do To Find Decent Kids' Music?

"The purple dinosaur that haunts my dreams..."

Vince Bucci, Getty Images

Above is the audio from my latest podcast in which I talk with NPR's Felix Contreras about what kinds of songs are good to play for kids. We talked about how one commenter Michael Lee pointed out that all parents have to endure annoying kiddie music at some point in time. Felix knows all about this because he survived listening to "The Muffin Man" 35 TIMES during one family road trip. Yikes!

But both Felix and I agreed with the comments of others who believe that by exposing kids to quality music at least some of the good stuff will stick. Felix says try out kid-friendly bands like Bare Naked Ladies (don't worry their name is PG-13, but many of their songs are innocent enough for a tot).

When I spoke with Gavin Rossdale, he told me that his son Kingston loves listening to his parents' CDs, Wanderlust and The Sweet Escape, and that he plays them constantly. While my wife Anna and I have yet to release our own solo albums (or duet for that matter), we are lucky enough to have a professional musician in the family. Anna's dad, Rick Tiven, is an accomplished violinist and has lent his fiddling skills to a number of albums, including most recently, Passin' It On, a compilation of classic children's folk songs. So we've been playing that for her for a while.

As for contemporary songs which might have questionable subject matter, I don't care what Gavin Rossdale says about not censuring music. I still plan on changing all the naughty lyrics for my daughter.

Here's my version of No Doubt's "Hey Baby"

I'm just sipping on sippy cups
Watching boys and girls with their doggy pups
One day I'm gonna grow up big and strong
And graduate high school!

Hey Baby! Hey Baby Hey!

4:18 PM ET | 11-22-2008 | permalink

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Conversation with Gavin Rossdale on Kids Music

Above is the link to the conversation I had with Gavin Rossdale about being a dad/rock star. I'll be using quotes from this conversation later this week in my podcast when I discuss what songs to play for kids. One of the best resources for children's music is the WXPN show Kids Corner where I interned during college. They've always got cool stuff.

Here are five of my favorite songs for kids:

Istanbul (Not Constantinople) by They Might Be Giants

S-A-F-E-T-Y Dance by Men Without Hats

Old Dan Tucker by Bruce Springsteen

One Love by Bob Marley

Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys by Willie Nelson

As for some cooler "kids-only music" I've always been partial towards The Wiggles. I interviewed them for Day to Day a couple years ago.

Let me know if you have any suggestions for cool songs that aren't too annoyingly "kiddy" that you like.

3:56 PM ET | 11-17-2008 | permalink

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What Would Rob Do to Score a Hot Ticket?

Washington, DC is now full of excitement for an event that's a good two and half months away: the inauguration of our 44th president, Barack Obama. Maybe you're thinking it would be great to come see the historic moment in person and maybe you've heard that tickets are actually free. But wait a second because it might not be that easy.

Hotels have already sold out, ballrooms booked, and there's even a new market out there for DC residents to offer up their homes for the event. One listing on Craigslist had three nights at a Georgetown house going for $15,000! In case you're wondering, the Sachs family abode will not be available. There's no amount of money that's worth the headache my wife and I would endure if we messed with our nine month old's sleep schedule for three nights.

But the real bonanza here is not the rental market, it's the ticket market, and money is not the impediment, since these tickets are free. The catch is you have to get them from your local congressman or senator, and tickets are limited. They only have a couple of hundred each to give out.

Continue reading "What Would Rob Do to Score a Hot Ticket?" »

3:15 PM ET | 11-14-2008 | permalink

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Gavin Rossdale: Rocker Daddy

Today I'm interviewing Gavin Rossdale, formerly of the band Bush, known for their guitar-heavy hits like Machinehead. These days, Rossdale has gone solo, and perhaps a little less gritty, with his new album Wanderlust that includes a pretty cool rock ballad called "Love Remains the Same."

But while comebacks always make for good interviews, what I'm going to be speaking to him about is music that's appropriate for kids. Rossdale and his also famous wife Gwen Stefani (of the band No Doubt) recently gave birth to their second son, Zuma. Their first son, Kingston, is two years older than Zuma. I'll be asking Rossdale what kind of music a "cool" dad plays for their kids? I'm wondering if they play their kids any of their own music. Surely the No Doubt song "Hey Baby" is on their kids' playlist.

According to People Magazine, one thing Rossdale hasn't done yet is follow in the footsteps of other musicians who have written songs for their kids. Rockers who have done this include Paul Simon with his song Father and Daughter, Stevie Wonder with his song Isn't She Lovely?, and Paul McCartney with his song 222, which is dedicated to his four-year-old daughter, Beatrice Milly.

4:00 PM ET | 11-10-2008 | permalink

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Ding-a-Ling

For this week's podcast, I looked into how to deal with dents and dings in your car. I did some research on car repair and found out a few interesting things:

1) There's a relatively new industry out there of paintless dent repair and it seems to be vastly cheaper than taking your car to an auto body shop. I talked to Eddie Martin today, the owner of The Dent Devils which is based in San Diego, CA. He says his jobs start as low as a hundred bucks for a repair that you'd be lucky to pay around $250 for if it was done as a new paint job.

2) I found out that despite other people's assertions, there is a catch to the 3M Invisible Film method, which Martin says is easy to screw up. The 3M company actually recommends having a pro install it for you. But from what I've found online, it looks a lot people have had success with it.

3) Martin also says beware of those suction dent removers as they can sometimes cause your dent to pop out the other way and then you've got a big old mound on your car. Doesn't it look like so much fun though?

4) Lastly, if you're thinking that taking up two spots in a parking garage will help protect your car from door dings, think again.

That's all for now, look for my podcast to post Friday afternoon.

12:02 PM ET | 11- 7-2008 | permalink

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Election Day on the Move

Last week while my wife and I were walking through Center City Philadelphia, we encountered a driving preacher. And by driving preacher I mean literally a guy using a PA system strapped to the roof of his car to preach his message. We both remarked how it seemed kind of silly to be preaching this way since most people would only catch a snippet or two of his message before his car was out of earshot.

I think a better use of the speakers definitely would have been for getting out the vote, something where he'd be repeating one message over and over. Like the kind Goldie Wilson used when running for Mayor in Back to the Future. Or better yet the kind that The Blues Brothers used to get some promotion for their concert. I didn't seen any speakers mounted on cars for yesterday's election, but this week I saw something way cooler. A moving video billboard truck. I guess this is the new generation of mobile electioneering.

3:53 PM ET | 11- 5-2008 | permalink

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