Quote of the Day

Prefer knowledge to wealth, for the one
is transitory, the other perpetual.



Socrates

Quote of the Day

The longer I live, the more uninformed I feel. Only
the young have an explanation for everything.



Isabel Allende Llona

Quote of the Day

Solitude is fine but you need some-
one to tell that solitude is fine.



Honoré de Balzac

Quote of the Day

I worked in a pet store and people
would ask how big I would get.



Jacob Cohen, a.k.a. Rodney Dangerfield

Quote of the Day

The quality of any advice anybody has
to offer has to be judged against the
quality of life they actually lead.



Douglas Noel Adams

Quote of the Day

The young do not know enough to be prudent,
and therefore they attempt the impossible -
and achieve it, generation after generation.



Pearl Sydenstricker Buck

Quote of the Day

You will never be happy if you continue to search
for what happiness consists of. You will never
live if you are looking for the meaning of life.



Albert Camus

Quote of the Day

Cleaning your house while your kids
are still growing is like shoveling the
sidewalk before it stops snowing.



Phyllis Ada Driver, a.k.a. Phyllis Diller

Mercy Rules

A few of you original readers may recall I don't like running up scores on others - or having them run up against us!

Sometimes it's unavoidable. If you're in a tri- or quad-meet, your line-up may help you stay in a meet with one opponent, while running it up on a weaker one. You may also have coaches that won't agree to let you to swim your kids "exhibition" if the meet's getting out of hand.

Starting in the fall of 2012, the Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools (TAPPS) will have mercy rules for football and basketball. Read more here.

The rule calls for a running clock in the second half of TAPPS games if a team reaches a 40-point lead. If the lead gets under 40, the timing goes back to regular rules.

"It's to keep teams from losing games 80-2 or something like that," Burleson said. "It doesn't do anybody any good - not the winning team and not the losing team."

Quote of the Day

We need not worry so much about what man
descends from; it's what he descends
to that shames the human race.



Samuel Langhorne Clemens, a.k.a. Mark Twain

Quote of the Day

Show me somebody who is always smiling,
always cheerful, always optimistic, and I
will show you somebody who hasn't the
faintest idea what the heck is really going on.



Michael "Mike" Royko

Quote of the Day

If you want that good feeling that comes from
doing things for other folks then you have to
pay for it in abuse and misunderstanding.



Zora Neale Hurston

Quote of the Day

There's no sense in being precise when you
don't even know what you're talking about.



John von Neumann

Ignorant or Dishonest?

It's got to be one or the other. Either Education Secretary Arne Duncan is clueless on Title IX or he's lying.

Sabrina Schaeffer calls out Duncan on Huff Post here. That's right, the Huffington Post.

Four decades after the law passed, Secretary Duncan seems to remain largely ignorant of the serious ramifications of this legislation, which, in effect, has helped institutionalize gender inequality, quotas and preferences. During the Tweet-up Duncan wrote, "Contrary to conventional wisdom, since 1972 access to men's sports has not been diminished." He added, "T9 requires schools to offer equal athletic opps for men & women. It doesn't require schools to eliminate any teams."

Well, not exactly, Mr. Secretary.

In actuality, between 1981-2005 men's teams per school dropped 17 percent while women's teams rose by 34 percent. The reason is this: the proportional participation clause in Title IX, upheld by Duncan's own department, states that if the number of female athletes is not "proportional" to the number of women enrolled at an institution then the school is technically "discriminating."

Ignorant or dishonest?

Duncan's ignorance -- or dishonesty -- about Title IX were additionally concerning because the AAUW and other feminist outlets would like to see Title IX-like legislation used to tackle disparities in academics, namely the "crisis" of women in math and science. In short, they want Congress to legislate parity in these disciplines, once again ignoring the real and important differences that exist between the genders. (Of course, this is always one-sided. I have yet to see the AAUW argue for more male English or Psychology majors. Nor have I seen any outrage about the shortage of male nurses.)

At some point, I hope feminists will begin to accept that men and women -- no matter how balanced the circumstances -- maintain different strengths and preferences. Because what is very clear is that legislation in the name of "gender equality" does not actually make men and women the same.

Quote of the Day

Think twice before burdening
a friend with a secret.



Maria Magdalene "Marlene" Dietrich

Quote of the Day

I wonder how many people I've looked
at all my life and never seen.



John Ernst Steinbeck, Jr.

Celebrating Forty Years of Title IX

Plenty of good has come out of Title IX, right? Making sure there are equal opportunities and equitable budgeting were the intent.

What about the unintended consequences? We've seen plenty, haven't we?

Mike Drago of the Reading Eagle reminds us what it's done to Pennsylvania high school basketball here.

Oh, and before you send Gloria Allred after me, you should know: I don't dislike girls. I've raised two of them and have driven all over creation watching them play soccer, softball, field hockey and lacrosse.

I'm all for girls playing sports, and getting an equal shake at everything. I insist on it, in fact.

It's just sad that we've out-thought ourselves on this one and now suffer the unintended consequences.

Thanks, TF!



Info on 2012 SMU Mustang Swim Camps is here.

If you'd like to help Greg Earhart cover upcoming college conference meets, info is at College Swimming here.



One of my favorite tags at Colossal is flickr finds. Check them out.

The City of Conroe needs an aquatics coordinator. Info is here.

Looking for something further north? The City of Cleburne has a similar position available. Info is here.

Wondering about the 2012 Longhorns Swim Camp? All four (4) sessions are sold out. You can get on the waiting list here.

The City of Denton needs an assistant swim coach. Info is here.



Via Incidental Comics

What? This is real?!?!




Alief Aquatic Club needs assistant coaches - NOW! Contact John Berry at 832-567-6157.

The latest issue of NCAA's Champion features Wayne State diver Paige Kortman. Check out the February issue here.

A message from our president - that's our TISCA president - is here.

Remember the "good old days" when we'd try to figure out call-ups by calling buddies from around the state, buying newspapers from Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, etc.?

Good Bad news! Those days are back!! TISCA has agreed not to post call-ups. You'll have to wait for the official UIL call-ups list this time around.

Enough already! It's results time!!!!!

AAHSSL City Meet (Palo Alto)

SMU vs. A&M (W) and Incarnate Word vs. A&M (M)

SASA North B Champs

Texas vs. Auburn (W)

Belton New Year Invite

STSI South B Champs

PACK 8 & Under

Carrollton-Farmers Branch New Year's Classic

UALR vs. UNT (W)

SMU Classic (M)

AAHSSL City Meet (Block)

Austin College Invite

ESA 8 & Under

Mary Jobe Christmas Classic

Texas vs. Auburn (M)

Tex Robertson Invite

Austin College/Colorado College/Northwestern

AAHSSL City Meet (S.A. Nat)

Frisco ISD Last Chance

Gulf Senior

AAHSSL City Meet (Northside)

Austin Grand Prix

Quote of the Day

I drink to make other people more interesting.



Ernest Miller Hemingway

Quote of the Day

If you're going to kick authority in the
teeth, you might as well use two feet.



Keith Richards

Quote of the Day

Happiness makes up in height
for what it lacks in length.



Robert Lee Frost

Quote of the Day

Awareness can be best achieved and
honed through working outside.



Lionel Aggett

Quote of the Day

If you don't know history, then you
don't know anything. You are a leaf
that doesn't know it is part of a tree.



John Michael Crichton

Quote of the Day

Happiness is like a butterfly which, when
pursued, is always beyond our grasp, but,
if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you.



Nathaniel Hawthorne

Quote of the Day

Whoever fights monsters should see to it
that in the process he does not become a
monster. And if you gaze long enough into
an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.



Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche

Grand Rapids

They're dropping the football program in Grand Rapids. Read more here.

Scheduling difficulties, Title IX compliance problems and budget concerns were cited as reasons. The recent departure of head coach Tony Annese for NCAA Division II Ferris State was also said to be a factor, along with “significant personal obstacles faced by GRCC student-athletes.”

In early December, dozens of Grand Rapids players were evicted from off-campus housing because a landlord stated he failed to receive rent after claiming to reach a deal with the college’s football coaches. The school is not allowed to pay for student-athlete housing.

GRCC has been conducting an internal investigation into the issue. The landlord claimed that he was owed tens of thousands of dollars in back rent dating to September. Roughly 30-40 of the 70 players still living at those properties were left homeless overnight in early December.

Sounds like a real mess. Don't worry about the swimmers, though - GRCC no longer has a swim program.

They used to host NJCAA championships...

Quote of the Day

When I was a little boy, they called me a liar, but
now that I am grown up, they call me a writer.



Isaac Bashevis Singer

Quote of the Day

Tact is the ability to tell someone to go to hell in
such a way that they look forward to the trip.



Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill

Them eyes a Texas...

...is upon ya...



Longhorn men and women celebrating dual wins over Georgia.

Georgia at Texas (M&W)

Y'all love vacationing in the Big Bend, right? Never been? Hurry up and go!

Since Obumma's using it as collateral to secure bailout funding for MF Global, signage will probably end up being in Mandarin Chinese soon...


View pics from a New Yorker making the journey way out thatta way here. Other posts from the trip on her blog (scroll down past that California stuff) here.


Speaking of New York, if you're in "The City" on February 11, you can catch GWG at a USA Swimming Foundation fundraiser. Info is here and here.

Looking to save the men's running programs at UD? Take this job and get that athletic department's money situation squared away.

If you're planning to officiate at this year's UIL state meet, application is here. Pay this year is $75 daily. Should more than cover gas money if you live within a ten mile radius of Austin, right?


No, I have never suggested using that extra cash at TSO. Also, to those complaining that last year's officials were being paid by the relay DQ - shame on you!! Why y'all tryin' to start somethin'?

Into titles? The Houston Texans YMCA has just the position for you! They're looking for someone to fill "the position of Youth Development Director-Swim, Sports/Play and School-Age Enrichment". Info is here. Good luck fitting all that on your business card...

Need a nifty job title? It's as easy as 1-2-3! Naughty word warning! Job Title Generator


USA Swimming is in BIG trouble with Ben Franklin fans! In their 2012 Volume 1 email to members, the Quote of the week (That's right, they only work 1/7 as hard as yours truly!) was:

Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each New Year find you a better (wo)man. -- Benjamin Franklin

Really? Most think Ben's quote went more like this. Should it be up to me to keep an eye on those folks up in Colorado Springs? Where the heck was Splash-O-Truth when we needed them? Don't tell me they were nosing around in Knoxville...


ASCA is returning to Las Vegas. Everything you need to know to plan your trip to the 2012 World Clinic is here.

Yeah, we had a neighbor like this.

Don't expect any action from the MIAA on the issue of guys swimming in the Massachusetts girls' state meet. Read more here. That's right, they're forming another committee...

The Swim Committee embraced half of the debate by forming a subcommittee to study the mixed-gender issue. Said committee chairman Ray Grant of Seekonk, “It’s certainly not a new issue for this committee.’’

How do I think they'll fix the problem? How the heck should I know?!?! What do I look like, the danged Shell Answer Man?


Meet information changes for the Austin Grand Prix have been posted. View them here.

University of San Diego Relay Meet

TCU at San Diego State University

MAC BB

Quote of the Day

Yesterday's home runs don't win today's games.



George Herman "Babe" Ruth, Jr.

Quote of the Day

Ninety percent I'll spend on good times,
women, and Irish whiskey. The other
ten percent I'll probably waste.



Frank Edwin "Tug" McGraw, Jr.

Quote of the Day

I don't want to play golf. When I hit a ball,
I want someone else to go chase it.



Rogers Hornsby

You've Found It!!!

That's right - it's just what you've been searching for - a swimming post without JT gossip! Unfortunately, not a whole lot of swimming stuff, either...

Burnet TISCA

An aquatics director is needed in the Houston area. Job info is here.



Austin Grand Prix Timeline

Grand Prix Parking

Note: Grand Prix finals will begin at 6:00 p.m. each evening!!!!


Time to revisit the MIAA girls' state swim meet. That's right - the one guys swam in. Read an update here.

This fall, eight girls’ swim teams carried male swimmers on their rosters and several boys qualified to compete in the girls’ state championships. In November, Will Higgins, a male swimmer from Norwood High, broke a meet record for the girls’ 50-yard freestyle event.

The Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association’s Swim Committee will convene for its regularly scheduled meeting on Thursday. Among the topics to be discussed will be how to handle the sectional record set by Higgins.

“There will be a discussion of the boys setting records in girls’ swim tournaments on the agenda,’’ confirmed MIAA spokesman Paul Wetzel in an e-mail.

The MIAA swim committee was scheduled to meet today.

Quote of the Day

I may be dumb, but I'm not stupid.



Terry Paxton Bradshaw

Quote of the Day

Whatever you do, don't do it halfway.



Robert "Bob" Beamon

The Precious Present

In Bob Steele's Games-Gimmicks-Challenges, legendary high school coach Lanny Landtroop suggested reading "The Precious Present" to the team.

Try it!

You can print out "The Precious Present" by Spencer Johnson here.

The message is an important one:

Learn from the past, plan for the future, but live in the present.

Quote of the Day

Brigands demand your money or
your life; women require both.



Samuel Butler

Dino Does His Homework

Many of you know the University of Delaware is dumping their men's running programs.

The administration can't make up their mind as to the reason for cutting them, though.

Citing Title IX isn't working for them, as the only gender equity issue at the school involves complaints from the men!

Dino did a little research and found that budget shouldn't be a problem, either.

Read more here.

Half of one percent of the top twenty earners at UD would fund men's track:

On UD’s 2009 Federal Tax Return for the top 20 earners, the total for men is $6,640,427 and for women only a measly $666,307 for a grand total of $7,306,734. Just 0.5% of this is $36,533.67, UD reported operating costs for men’s outdoor track and field were only $35,589.

Quote of the Day

Celebrate what you want to see more of.



Thomas J. "Tom" Peters

Quote of the Day

For last year's words belong to last
year's language. And next year's
words await another voice.



Thomas Stearns "T.S." Eliot