In Memoriam, 2015

Every year, the world loses out on a group of celebrities that succumbed to death in one form or another. It's inevitable for us all, but at least for these celebrities, they entertained us in some way while they were still alive. Over a one year period, there are too many too write about them all in one blog, so instead, I give you 10 celebrities that probably had the biggest impacts on me while they were still alive. Rest in peace...

1. Donna Douglas (8/26/32-1/1/15) 82 years old: Douglas landed appearances on shows such as The Perry Cuomo Show, The Steve Allen Show, The Ed Sullivan Show, The Twilight Zone, and Route 66 before landing her most famous role as Elly May Clampett on The Beverly Hillbillies. She ran into being type-casted as the sexy country girl after The Beverly Hillbillies went off the air after nine seasons. Eventually she moved on to singing gospel music. Douglas would pass away from pancreatic cancer at a Baton Rouge, Louisiana hospital on New Years Day.

2. Ernie Banks (1/31/31-1/23/15) 83 years old: Known as Mr. Cub, Banks is perhaps the most famous player to play for the famed Chicago Cubs. The Hall of Famer was once quoted as saying, "We've got the setting, sunshine, fresh air, the team behind us. So let's play two!" which became one of the most iconic quotes in baseball history. He was a two-time MVP who hit over 500 homers, and had over 2,500 hits. Some argue that he might be the best shortstop of all time, but he played more games at first base. He was the very first Cubs player to have his number retired and a statue stands in front of him stands in front of Wrigley Field. Banks died from a heart attack at a Chicago area hospital.

3. Leonard Nimoy (3/26/31-2/2715) 83 years old: Known for his iconic role as Mr. Spock in the Star Trek TV shows and movies, Nimoy's role is arguably one of the most famous in sci-fi history. As Spock, he was nominated for three Emmy's before moving on to another hit show, Mission Impossible. He also made appearances on other hits such as Dragnet, Perry Mason, The Twilight Zone, Wagon Train, Bonanza, Combat!, The Outer Limits and Get Smart before locking down the role of Spock. Nimoy also tried his hand in photography, music, writing, and directing movies including two of the Star Trek movies and Three Men and a Baby. Nimoy passed away in his home from complications from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease due to his years of smoking.

4. Grace Lee Whitney (4/1/30-5/1/15) 85 years old: Most famous for her role as Janice Rand in the original Star Trek series and films, Whitney only appeared on eight episodes during the first season before reprising her role in the films. She made many more appearances on other popular TV shows including Mannix, Batman, Bewitched, The Outer Limits, 77 Sunset Strip, Hawaiian Eye, and Gunsmoke. Whitney also was a singer who opened up at Chicago nightclubs for Billie Holiday and Buddy Rich. She died of natural causes at her home in California.

5. BB King (9/16/25-5/14/15) 89 years old: Ranked as the sixth greatest guitar player in the world by Rolling Stone, King has perhaps the greatest career of any blues artist in history. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987 and is nicknamed "The King of Blues". King began his recording career in 1949 and performed up to the year of his death in 2015. During his career, BB won 15 Grammy Awards and was awarded a Presidential Medal of Freedom. His song "The Thrill is Gone" is considered by many the greatest blues song ever written and performed. In the 90's, he opened up the BB King Blues Clubs of which two are still open, with two more scheduled to open up soon. His guitar is also one of the most famous in history, nicknaming the Gibson ES-355's he prefers to use "Lucille". Unfortunately, at the end of King's life, he battled diabetes and would have to perform while sitting down on a stool. He eventually passed away while sleeping from multi-infarct dementia brought on by a series of small strokes caused by atherosclerotic vascular disease as a consequence of his diabetes.

6. Yvonne Craig (5/16/37-8/17/15) 78 years old: Craig began her career as a dancer before finding herself in television and movie roles. Finding herself in small roles in the movie version of Gidget, she would go on to play the love interest in two Elvis Presley movies (It Happened at the World's Fair and Kissin' Cousins) as well as finding herself appearing in various hit TV shows such as The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., The Wild Wild West, and McHale's Navy. It was then when she was cast in her most famous role as Batgirl in the Batman TV show alongside Adam West and Burt Ward. Not long afterward, she would also be cast in her second most famous role in Star Trek as Marta, the green skinned Orion slave girl. Craig would go on to more appearances in hit shows such as Starsky and Hutch, Fantasy Island, The Six Million Dollar Man, Kojak, and Love, American Style. She died at her home from metastatic breast cancer that spread to her liver.

7. Yogi Berra (5/12/25-9/22/15) 90 years old: Yogi Berra is considered one of the greatest catchers in Major League Baseball history, but despite this, he is almost as well known for his quotes to the press that would be known as "Yogi-isms". Some of them include, "It ain't over till it's over,", "The future ain't what it used to be,", "Baseball is 90% mental and the other half is physical,", "I really didn't say everything I said." Berra is one of only five players in history to have won the AL MVP three times and was a first ballot hall of famer in 1972. He was also one of only seven managers in history to lead an AL and NL team to the World Series. Yogi was an 18 time all-star who had his number 8 retired by the Yankees. He also holds the record for most World Series rings with 10 as a player and 3 more as a coach. He passed away from natural causes on the 69th anniversary of his debut game with the Yankees.

8. Maureen O'Hara (8/17/20-10/24/15) 95 years old: The fire-redheaded starlet was one of the biggest names in the Golden Age of Hollywood. Perhaps most famously known for her role as Doris Walker in Miracle on 34th Street, a Christmas favorite that is aired every December on a television near you, she had also starred in other hits. She had starred in Sinbad the Sailor with Morgan Fairbanks, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, How Green Was My Valley, and The Black Swan over her career as well. Acting during the rise of color films, she was dubbed "The Queen of Technicolor". She passed away in her sleep at her Boise, Idaho home.

9. George Barris (11/20/25-11/5/15) 89 years old: Not a name that some people may recognize, but Barris was one of the masters at creating iconic cars for television and movie shows. His two most notable creations were the Batmobile from the Batman '66 television show and the Munster Koach of The Munsters. During his time working on customized automobiles, he had also designed or customized other cars such as the Clampetts's truck from Beverly Hillbillies, the General Lee from Dukes of Hazzard, KITT from Knight Rider, and the tour vehicles in Jurassic Park. At the age of 89, Barris passed away in his sleep.

10. Scott Weiland (10/27/67-12/3/15) 48 years old: Lead singer to Stone Temple Pilots and later Velvet Revolver, Weiland battled through drug addiction while establishing himself as one of the greatest rock stars of the '90s and 2000's. With the initial release of Core in 1992 with Stone Temple Pilots, the band released a ton of hits including Plush, Creep, Big Empty, Vasoline, Interstate Love Song, Big Bang Baby, Trippin' on a Hole in a Paper Heart, Lady Picture Show, Down, and Sour Girl which would be enough for a band to land in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Weiland then moved on to join members of Guns N' Roses to form Velvet Revolver and produced hits such as Slither, Fall to Pieces, and She Builds Quick Machines. Found dead on his tour bus with his current group, The Wildabouts, it was later determined that despite his claims to have recovered from previous drug and alcohol addictions, his death was caused by a lethal mixture of cocaine, ethanol, and Methylenedioxyamphetamine.

When is it okay to Spoil?

With the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, there have been a ton of posts on social media that have asked people to not spoil the plot and ending of the movie. Other blockbuster movies had posts requesting the same thing. This leaves the question...when is the acceptable time period okay to talk about a movie plot or ending?

Some examples of opinions online have stated that while a movie is still in the theaters, it should be off limits. If that is the case, some movie theaters exhibit movies far beyond their initial release date. The Dark Knight Rises lasted in some theaters for almost two years after it was released. On the flipside, if it is okay to talk about the movie after it has stopped being exhibited at movie theaters, then how is this fair for people waiting for it to be released for sale on DVD or Blu-Ray? People pay good money for a movie that is released for home viewing, so why would it be fair to spoil the movie for them?

From personal experience, I once got an earful from a person at my work when I talked about the plotline to the ending of Batman...during the week of the release of Batman Begins which was released 16 years later. The other person complained that they had planned on having a Batman themed movie weekend planned before they were going to see the new one in the theaters. Is this fair to complain about? In this particular case, the Tim Burton movie had nothing to do with the series starring Christian Bale.

When talking about a movie, should a pre-question be posed to the group of people who might participate in talking about the movie, whether or not they have seen the movie or at least not mind hearing about it? Does this conversation have to stop or be paused if someone enters the room? This seems like it would take the fun out of talking about movies if you have to worry about talking about them in front of groups of people. It can be understandable if the movie had been just released, but if it has been out for a while, it seems like the movie should be fair game.

Another question that can be posed...does the popularity of the movie play a difference on when it can be "spoiled"? A blockbuster hit like a Star Wars movie has more people who want to see it than say a movie such as a sequel to Joe Dirt. Does this make it more okay to talk about the smaller anticipated movie within a shorter amount of time after the movies release date? If a Star Wars movie has a six month "no spoil" limit, does a Joe Dirt movie have two months? On the flipside of this question, shouldn't a blockbuster have a shorter spoil limit since it presumably has a higher demand to see it as soon as possible?

I feel that on average, a three to four month limit on spoilers should be placed on a movie. A person should be self aware of friends or coworkers that have been wanting to see a movie, but have yet to see it, but in the situation of casual conversation, one hundred days sounds about right. Yes, it might not be for sale in home video form yet, but this isn't exactly fair to those who have seen the movie and want to share their experience with friends and family.

Photo Credit: Storyboard from Dark Knight Rises

Celebs You Didn't Know Were Related

Screencaps taken from Groundhog Day (Bill Murray left, Brian Doyle-Murray right)

Everyone seems to know of someone that they grew up with that ended up being famous. Even less often, you might actually be related to someone famous or at least ended up with their fair share of fifteen minutes of fame. But on occasion, families have multiple celebrities within their ancestral lineage. Today, it doesn't seem too uncommon when a power A-list couple has a kid that ends up being famous on their own, but there are also occasions when a family may have a couple of famous people within the same bloodline that people have no idea are related. Everyone knows of famous relatives such as the Baldwin brothers, the Arquettes, and the Copola family, but here is a small sampling of celebrities you might not know are related....

1. Jason Sudeikis and George Wendt: Most famous for being Norm on Cheers, George Wendt earned some time on Saturday Night Live as one of the Bears Superfans who debated how awesome former Bears coach Mike Ditka was. Later on Jason Sudeikis, Wendt's nephew, would try out for the show, earning a spot as a writer before eventually becoming a full-time cast member who would eventually be the show's prominent male cast member. Sudeikis moved onto movies, starring in comedic hits such as Horrible Bosses while his uncle makes guest appearances on shows such as Portlandia.

2. Jenny McCarthy and Melissa McCarthy: While the name may be a give away, the two of them peaked at different times and for different reasons. Jenny McCarthy originally famous for being a Playboy model in the early nineties, moved on to MTV and shows such as Singled Out. She branched out into playing small comedic roles, but was eventually outshined by her cousin. Melissa didn't quite catch on until she earned a role on Gilmore Girls. From there she moved on to her own show Mike and Mike before climbing up the fame ladder into feature movies while her cousin Jenny is now more known for her advocacy against vaccinations.

3. Mary-Kate, Ashley, and Elizabeth Olsen: Just about everyone alive since the eighties is aware of the power twins that got their start as Michelle Tanner on Full House, but not everyone is aware that they have a younger sister that has climbed the ladder of fame too. Learning her craft through NYU and through the Moscow Art Theatre School, it took a little more time for the younger Olsen to earn fame. She solidified herself in the Marvel movie universe, starring as the Scarlet Witch in Avengers: Age of Ultron and will play an integral part as Scarlet Witch in Captain America: Civil War.

4. Mariska Hargitay and Jayne Mansfield: Known as the "working man's Marilyn Monroe", the Hollywood sex symbol of the fifties and early sixties died at the young age of 34. Her public life was highly publicized and if she were alive today, probably would have had her own reality show. The blonde bombshell is said to have been the inspiration of the Ginger Grant character in Gilligan's Island, but what a lot of people didn't know about the early Playboy model was that she had a daughter with her then second husband, actor and former Mr. Universe, Mickey Hargitay. Mariska grew up, working her way through sexy roles in Baywatch, Seinfeld, and as a hooker in Leaving Las Vegas before landing the role of a lifetime as Olivia Benson on Law and Order: Special Victims Unit.

5. Bill Murray and Brian Doyle-Murray: Looking at them today, they don't resemble each other, but the two actors are brothers. Brian, the older brother started his career as a member of Second City in the early seventies before inviting his younger brother, Bill, to join him. Bill eventually moved on and joined John Belushi in the National Lampoon Radio Hour. This led to Bill landing a spot on the burgeoning comedy hit, Saturday Night Live. Through his success, Brian landed a role as a featured player for SNL for several seasons. Brian moved on to roles in movies such as JFK and as a famous voice actor for SpongeBob SquarePants. He became known for his roles as a cranky old man while Bill rose to A-list fame with hit movie roles such as Ghostbusters, Groundhog Day, and Lost in Translation.

6. Roxie Roker, Al Roker, Zoe Kravits, Jason Mamoa, and Lenny Kravitz: Famous for small roles in Punky Brewster, Roots, and A Different World. Roxie Roker was most famous for playing Helen Willis on The Jeffersons. She was one half of the first interracial couple on primetime television. Her son would go on to become one of the most famous rock stars of his generation, Lenny Kravitz. Hits of his include Are You Gonna Go My Way, Fly Away, and his cover of American Woman. Tangling the family celebrity web up more, he married Lisa Bonet of The Cosby Show and had a daughter, Zoe, before they divorced. Zoe would go on to be an actress herself, starring in movies such as X-Men: First Class, Mad Max: Fury Road and in a notable television role as Pearl on the hit show Californication. To complicate the family tree even more, Roxie's cousin is Al Roker of NBC's Today show, who is a news personality/weatherman who has wrote several famous books. In 2009, Al Roker conducted a cast interview with those who starred in The Cosby Show minus one star...Lisa Bonet whom by then had divorced Al Roker's cousin, Lenny Kravitz. One more minor celebrity attachment to the Roker/Kravitz family is through Bonet. After her marriage to Kravitz, she remarried actor Jason Mamoa of Batman V. Superman: Dawn of Justice, Game of Thrones, and Stargate Atlantis. This makes Mamoa the stepfather of Zoe Kravitz.

7. Archie Manning, Peyton Manning, Eli Manning, Kellin Manning, and Taryn Manning: Just about every sports fan is aware of the famous football family that has breed several quarterbacks, but not many people are aware that their cousin is Taryn Manning of 8 Mile and Orange is the New Black fame. The actress also pairs up with her brother Kellin to form the pop duo Boomkat known for their first single, The Wreckoning.

8. Snoop Dogg, Nate Dogg, Ray J, and Brandy Norwood: Bursting into the music scene in the nineties, Snoop is first cousins with R&B star Brandy and her brother Ray J who may be most famous for his celebrity sex tape with Kim Kardashian. The cousins never made a big deal about their family ties when starting out in the music industry as Snoop gained fame originally for gansta rap and Brandy gained fame through her pop music. Also hitting success in rap music, Nate Dogg first burst into mainstream rap with Warren G on the song Regulate and later would pair up with Snoop, Eminem, Ludacris, Dr. Dre, and many others.

9. Tippi Hedren, Melanie Griffith, Taylor Griffith, Don Johnson, and Dakota Johnson: Tippoe Hedren, famous for her leading role in Alfred Hitchcock's The Birds married former child actor Peter Griffith. The two of them had Melanie Griffith before they divorced. Peter later married another actress Nanita Greene and had Taylor Griffith, one of the stars of All Tied Up and now a chef/host for the D.I.Y. Network. Melanie would go on to her own fame, winning an Academy Award for Working Girl and Golden Globes for Body Double and Something Wild. At 19, Melanie married her mother's costar, Don Johnson who would go on to star in the eighties hit show, Miami Vice and the nineties hit show Nash Bridges. Melanie and Don split up, but before the did, they had Dakota Johnson. She played small parts in hit movies such as The Social Network before starring in her biggest role as Anastasia Steele in Fifty Shades of Grey. On a side note, Melanie would later go on to marry Antonio Banderas, making him Dakota's stepfather.

Moon Base Logical Next Step in Space Exploration

Launching a rocket from Earth to space requires a large amount of fuel to overcome gravity and to get out of Earth's atmosphere. The extra weight of the spacecraft and the expensive cost of fuel make launching from the moon instead of Earth a possibly cheaper idea when talking about sending out satellites and astronauts to farther and farther reaches of our galaxy.

The moon would be the best first step in creating a launching point for deep space exploration. The initial cost to set up a moon base would be costly, but in the long run, a cheaper investment overall if we expect to eventually reach destinations such as Mars or even asteroids to mine for materials.

There has been speculation that a rocket can achieve a higher speed if launched from a lower gravity location. Earth's atmosphere and gravity slow rockets down at the initial launch. If humanity were to build a base on the moon, the peak speed reached by a rocket could be higher.

Eventually humanity needs to get off Earth as it is. In the short term, we may have to escape Earth because of the damage we have created through climate change. In the long term, the sun is a growing star that is ever expanding and eventually life on Earth will have to adapt and most likely leave the planet to avoid extinction (if we aren't extinct already).

There are resources elsewhere in our galaxy if we intend to explore our solar system and beyond. Asteroids have various elements that we can use to explore even farther. Moons of several planets are believed to possible have water as well. NASA is also finding exo-planets which could contain useful materials.

Space is our final frontier and if we expect to expand the lifespan of our species, we need to start with space bases. Starting with the moon seems to be easiest and most logical place to start.

Reading Teaches Empathy to Children

Everywhere you go today, we're surrounded by new avenues of entertainment. After a school day is done, a kid is surrounded by movies, television, the internet, video games, cellphones, and more. The problem is that with all this stimuli, children are exposed less and less often to the single form of entertainment that is most educational and opens their eyes to the broad world around them...books.

Books, unlike many other forms of media, can help a child build empathy for those that are different from them. A great example is Uncle Tom's Cabin which was released in 1852. Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel opened the eyes of Americans by exposing readers to its anti-slavery themes. There is even a story that is told that Abraham Lincoln said, "So this is the little lady who started this great war," when he met Stowe at the start of the Civil War. It inspired people to stand up against the slavery practices of the south because they were able to empathize with the plight of Uncle Tom and Eliza.

When reading a book, the reader dives deeper into the world of the characters because they create a visualization in their heads of that world created by the book. It creates a more personal experience than a movie can because it forces the reader to be more emotionally invested in the storyline. Movies, TV shows, video games, and plays are more passive because the visual stimuli and imagination is placed on hold because the world is already created for them. While it is true that the author has constructed a world for their reader through words, the reader has to mentally participate in that world's creation through their own personal visualizations.

Once this world has been constructed in the readers head and they can visualize how the characters look, act, and talk, the reader becomes more attached to these characters because they have invested in them. If the character is faced with challenges or injustices, the reader is also brought along on the journey that that particular character has to take, teaching that child to be more empathetic toward someone else.

Empathy is an important part of adult society and is something that is often lacking in present times. Without empathy, it is easier to be prejudiced against those that are different from you. It is easier for lawmakers to skew laws that are unfair to particular social classes and races. With empathy, diplomacy can be achieved on a local level as well as at an international level.

The world is short on empathy and children reading books for entertainment rather than assigned reading has gone down. If parents can sway their children to read more and turn off the TV or put down their magazines, the world could grow to be a better place.

Millhouse 2016 Hall of Fame Ballot

Photo from Getty Images

We're only about a month away before the announcement of the 2016 class of the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame, most of the writers of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) have already turned in their ballots. A writer is able to select up to ten players for their choices for the Hall of Fame and with the number of players that are arguably Hall worthy, that is probably not enough. Still, here are the picks brought to you by this writer in no particular preference order (who has no official vote with the BBWAA) on who he would select if he were a BBWAA writer).

1. Ken Griffey Jr.: Once known as "The Kid", he ended his career with 630 homers which placed him sixth on the all-time home run list. He was a 10 time gold glove winner who won the MVP in 1997 while a member of the Seattle Mariners organization. During an era where just about every home run hitter has been suspected of steroid use, Griffey Jr. escaped most of that talk until the last year when several sports talk radio jockeys threw his name in the steroids hat. It should be noted that one of these jockeys also debated whether Greg Maddux did steroids.

2. Billy Wagner: Fifth in all-time saves, Wagner is arguably the best lefty closer to have ever played. His strikeouts per 9 innings average was 11.9, more than any lefty in baseball history with a minimum of 900 innings. He also has the lowest batting average allowed by a lefty pitcher with over 900 innings and has a career ERA of 2.31. The seven time all-star also won the Rolaids Relief Pitcher of the Year in 1997.

3. Trevor Hoffman: Hoffman retired as the all-time saves leader in baseball before Mariano Rivera passed him by. The seven time all-star won the Rolaids Relief Pitcher of the Year in 1998 and 2006.

4. Jeff Bagwell: Overshadowed in a decade full of great first basemen, Bagwell was consistently one of the best for a decade. He won the NL Rookie of the Year in 1991, the NL MVP in 1994, and the Major League Baseball Player of the Year in 1994. The three time Silver Slugger winner was also underrated in his fielding abilities, winning a Gold Glove in 1994. Unfortunately for him during his time as the one of the "Killer B's" of the Houston Astros, he was overshadowed by Mark McGwire as the premier homerun hitter in the National League.

5. Fred McGriff: Another overshadowed first baseman, McGriff hit a total of 493 homeruns and had a career batting average of .284. He'd won the Silver Slugger Award three times despite competing against other first basemen in both leagues such as Bagwell, McGwire, Rafael Palmeiro, Andres Galarraga, Eric Karros, and Mark Grace.

6. Mike Mussina: Mussina received Cy Young Award votes in nine separate seasons including his last, ending his career with 270, and 7 Gold Gloves. His 2,813 strikeouts are the 19th most of all-time. During his years he was a workhorse for both the Orioles and the Yankees, who has been passed over by the BBWAA for the last two years.

7. Tim Raines: Someone I had overlooked myself for several years as a Hall of Fame Candidate, listening to arguments made by others have swayed my opinion. During the '80s, Rock Raines was the premier stolen base leader, only behind Rickey Henderson and fifth (fourth in the modern era) all-time with 808. For the majority of his career, he was a .300 hitter who ended his career with a .294 batting average. The seven time all-star had also received MVP votes seven times in his career. He won the batting title in 1986 and had 2,605 hits.

8. Barry Bonds: The all-time home run leader in Major League Baseball has spent the past three years trying to get into the Hall. He won seven NL MVP's, was in 14 all-star games, was a 12 time Silver Slugger, had a career .298 batting average, had 2,227 runs scored (third all-time), had 1,996 career RBI's (fifth all-time), 2,558 walks (all-time leader), 514 stolen bases, and 2,935 hits. Despite being known for his hitting, he was also an eight time gold glover. Unfortunately during his career he had a horrible relationship with the press. Was he standoffish? Of course, but so have been so many players already in the Hall of Fame such as Ty Cobb. He's also been accused of steroids, but had never been proven to take them. Some use his size difference between his rookie year and his final year, such as several reporters on the MLB Network, but these same reporters will stand-up for Ken Griffey Jr. who also had gained a noticeable amount of size in his career. It's just part of getting old.

9. Roger Clemens: Possibly the best pitcher of all-time, Clemens was also a name thrown into the steroids accusations. Another player never proven to have taken steroids, he is still judged as one because a disgruntled former trainer of his made claims without proof against Clemens. Brian McNamara testified against Clemens, but it leaked out that he had worked out a book deal worth over a million dollars for throwing several players under the "steroids" bus. McNamara's only supposed evidence was that he had cotton swabs that soaked up the steroids shots he claimed to have gave Clemens and stored them for several years in an empty beer can under his kitchen sink. In the worst of scenarios in court, this would not be admissible evidence. Clemens even drug tested for the Olympics competition and passed. In front of a Congressional Hearing, his only testimony that was proven to be false was a question John McCain had asked him concerning or not if he had ever cheated on his wife. Clemens said no, but was found later to having a relationship with country music star, Mindy McCready, which has nothing to do with steroids use.

Back to his play on the field, Clemens won seven Cy Young Awards, an MVP, 11 time all-star, had 354 career wins (ninth all-time), 4,672 strikeouts (third all-time), a career ERA of 3.12, but has been passed up three times so far for the Hall. This student of Nolan Ryan was the scariest pitcher in Major League Baseball and that was before he learned to throw a splitter.

Calling Out a Dog Abuser

I don't usually let things on Facebook keep me up too late at night, but there is a post right now on a crazy person named Katie Brown's Facebook page that is starting to pick up steam by being shared by thousands of people.

This lady purposely posted a picture of her dog, duct taped around the mouth. She brags about doing it herself to keep her dog from barking. It's the act of a monster and not a loving dog owner.

Here's the nutball's profile link...
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100004883925173

All of us who have owned a dog or a pet of any kind for that manner, have had a moment or two where they had to play parent to their fur baby. This can be tricky since animals don't process thoughts the way we do and obviously don't understand 99% of the things we say. Still, as a loving owner, you should never do anything to inflict permanent harm on a pet, let alone BRAG about it. Katie Brown says she only did it for a minute, but that is one minute too many.

Her actions are that of someone who doesn't deserve the companionship of a pet. Dogs are one of the only animals out there that love their owner more than they love themselves. This dog's trust has to have been betrayed. Looking at her drooping ears, the dog is clearly sad.

This monster's post was brought to my attention by a post on Facebook by comedian Ian Bagg, fellow dog lover. Being the proud puppy parent of two dogs I love and another that my father owns that I love as well, I couldn't ever imagine being anywhere near this nuts in how I treat my pets.

In the little time this Facebook post was brought to my attention, her post went from 50,000 shares to now over 75,000 shares in little more than an hour. Even her own friends are turning on Katie Brown on her own Facebook feed and rightly so.

I'm sorry for letting a "simple" Facebook post spur a blog by me, but this really dug under my skin for the hour after I saw it. Something tells me that this isn't the first time she's done something stupid to her pets, just the first time that she may have posted it on social media, or at least the first time it went viral.

Treat your dogs with love. They love you more than you will ever know.

There is no Baseball in Heaven

Picture taken and edited by Daniel Millhouse

Three out of every four Americans believe in some sort of afterlife according to a poll conducted by CBS in 2014. Most of the people that believe in an afterlife believe that Heaven exist and is the perfect place to spend eternity. Heaven is supposed to be the place that is literally perfect and residents of Heaven are always happy. If this is the case, then it could be argued that in Heaven, competitive sports such as baseball doesn't exist.

Maybe this is the reason that so many ghosts in Field of Dreams wanted to play on Ray Kinsella's baseball field in the middle of an Iowan cornfield.

The reason being, especially in team sports, there are always losers. If Heaven is supposed to be a place of complete and eternal happiness, then how could a batter strike out against a pitcher in a baseball game played in Heaven? How could a fielder misplay a grounder, putting the winning run on base? This would seem that someone, even if for a short amount of time, would be unhappy in Heaven.

Could it be possible that there is no baseball in Heaven? For some of those on Earth, baseball is their favorite sport of all time and for some others, baseball is life. If there is no baseball then in the afterlife then how could they be as happy? Maybe it could be that God or whoever is in charge of the spirits, changes your mind about baseball not being so important, but if this is true, then wouldn't that impinge on free will?

In the opposite end of the spectrum, it doesn't seem possible that baseball would exist in Hell either. There's always a winner which doesn't feel like something that there would be in Hell. Unless every time before a game starts, there's a rainout and everyone is disappointed, but then there still wouldn't technically be baseball in Hell. Just the idea.

If the idea of Heaven in What Dreams May Come starring Robin Williams is the most accurate, then it's possible to play baseball and even have fun (as long as you keep winning) with some sort of creations of ballplayers you mentally create, but they wouldn't be real people/souls then. Playing against some sort of projection of a baseball player, especially one that lets you win in every instance seems empty.

The same can be said of other sports such as football, soccer, basketball, tennis, etc. There's always a loser and if there is, are you really in Heaven?

Rushing Past the Holidays

Picture taken by Daniel Millhouse

Holidays can be fun, they can lead to future heart warming memories, and can offer family an excuse to get together when their everyday life can make that seem impossible. So why do we rush so much to get to holidays that we skip over others or at least forget to cherish the time in between holidays?

Just this year, Target stores across the country were already setting up their Christmas sections of their stores as far back as the first week of September. What happened to Halloween? What about Thanksgiving? There's no harm in shopping for Christmas presents early when you're working with a tight budget, but do we really need to push aside the Halloween costumes in favor of tree decorations that shouldn't be displayed before November? Are we really in that much of a rush?

Family Dollar stores in California, in the year 2013, actually placed their Halloween product and candy decorated in Halloween themed packaging on clearance sale the week BEFORE Halloween to make room for Christmas toys.

The holidays in their current form are already creations of the retail industry as it is. Days like Valentine's Day carry importance because of push made by the candy, flower, and greeting card industries. Independence Day in America thrives because of the fireworks, food (barbeque specific), and alcohol industries.

Consumers shouldn't be barraged with holiday décor and festive items that deal with a particular holiday until that holiday is next in line. It steals the valuable moments that belong to the next holiday coming up. How can you truly enjoy Halloween when you're worried about what color lights you're going to dangle across the tree?

The holidays already pass by too quickly and don't need help passing us by. Enjoy them the and savor those moments that hopefully you'll remember for years to come and can reminisce through pictures and home video.

Middle Class America is Dying

The middle class in America is the next endangered species. Drastic as it may sound, this isn't too far off.

When people look back to the past many times they will cite a time in the 1950's as being the "good ole days". In the terms of the American economy, this argument could actually be made when it comes to the class system.

In 1950, the ratio gap between a CEO and his average paid employee was 20 to 1. By 1980, the number jumped to 42-1. This gap is now up to 350-1 on average. To put that into terms, the average employee would have to work nearly nine weeks to equal what his CEO made in only one hour of work.

When a company doesn't perform, it is often people at the lowest levels that are blamed for poor performance, but could some of it be the cost of the CEO to the company? J.C. Penney's former CEO Ron Johnson oversaw the decline of his company when in turn he was making 1,795 times more than his average employee. While a single pay cut for a CEO might not be enough in his case, the culmination of the board could have made a dent in the right direction. Johnson was ousted for J.C. Penney's drop in financial performance, but much of the board is still there.

One company, considered golden in the United States, Apple, not only has paid their CEO's a ton of cash, but has enough in the bank to not sell a single product for seven years and still be able to pay every single one of their employees. A company should keep money stored away for a rainy day, but how much is enough. At least while Steve Jobs was CEO, the company saw its level of innovation increase substantially, but not many CEO's can say they matched Jobs' rate of innovation for their company.

Another company, considered beloved by Americans, Disney, awarded their second-in-charge, Michael Ovitz, $38 million and $100 million in stock when Michael Eisner dismissed him from his position in 1997. This was after Ovitz only worked for Disney for less than 16 months and doesn't actually include his pay while he was employed. Was he worth at least $138 million to Disney? Probably not, but imagine what Disney could do payroll wise with $138 million. Shareholders tried to sue the company over the $100 million in stock given to Ovitz, but Disney claimed that the $100 million was his incentive to leave Creative Artists Agency (CAA) and join Disney. The courts upheld Disney's severance package decision.

What makes the gap worse is that many Americans aren't even aware of the difference. A study done by Harvard Business School produced research that Americans believe that the average CEO makes only around 30 times more than the average worker. "Americans drastically underestimated the gap in actual incomes between CEOs and unskilled workers," the study says.

The second largest CEO to average worker gap in the civilized countries of the world is in Switzerland and that is less than half of the gap in America, at 148-1. Denmark is at 48-1, Japan 67-1, and Israel 76-1.

CEO's should make more than anyone else in their company, especially if they are the company founder or at least the one who created the product that put their company on the map. But when the gap is significant, it could break America's back.

The unfortunate view in America is that often it is the average person who becomes demonized. As protests around America happen, people can't stand the idea of a fast food worker making a minimum wage of $15 an hour. Often memes online demonize fast food employees when they are compared to emergency responders or American soldiers and their rate of pay. The reality is that soldiers and first aid responders are also grossly underpaid, and if a fast food employee makes $15 an hour, in no way does it mean their work means more to than a soldier. Another reason $15 an hour isn't as high as it sounds because the buying power of a minimum wage worker in 1968 is nothing close to it is today. Compared to a minimum wage worker today, a worker today would have to make over $21 an hour to have that same purchasing power as someone did in 1968. Instead, the federal minimum wage is $7.25.

The rate of pay for lower paid workers never keep up with the rate of inflation, but a CEO's rate of pay went up over 1,000 percent during the same period. This is despite that the regular employee is the one demonized by much of America, instead of the CEO, especially with a Fortune 500 company.

Henry Ford in 1914 made a bold decision that kick started the growth of the American middle class in the 20th Century. He paid double the price of what the average factory worker made elsewhere. Paying double amount to an employee sounds like it could be the main ingredient toward bankruptcy for some, but in fact his turnover was lower than any other company, his profits doubled in less than two years, and Ford called it the best cost cutting procedure he ever did.

"A business that makes nothing but money is a poor business," Ford was quoted as saying.

This move by Ford not only gave his employees more money in their pockets, but it gave them more money to spend. He believed that his average employee should be able to afford to buy one of the very cars they made.

When the people at the middle class levels and lower receive more pay, studies have shown that more money is actually injected into the economy and businesses benefit as a whole. The poor would most likely spend almost every penny they make on consumer goods from clothing, food, transportation, and entertainment. The middle class is a little more likely to save a little more, but would still have more money on hand to spend. The tourism industry would get a boost, their children would find paying for college a lot easier, and even the money saved would eventually be spent in the elder years of the middle class.

The gap needs to shrink back to levels it was in the middle of the 20th century for America to be "great again".

EMP Pulse a Real Threat to Life

Picture source: NASA website

Many doomsday theorists in the twentieth century believed that if we destroy ourselves as a species, the cause would most likely be by nuclear war. By the time the twenty-first century rolled around, Global Warming/Climate Change became one of the more leading possibilities. Another possibility, although maybe not as pressing as Earth's changing weather, a possibility that doesn't often get discussed is an electromagnetic pulse.

The two most likely ways that Earth can be hit on a large scale is by a massive solar flare from the sun and by nuclear detonation twenty-five to five hundred miles in altitude over the central United States according to the Commission to Assess the Threat to the U.S. from EMP Attack, in testimony before the House Armed Services Committee in July 2008.

A nuclear attack even on this scale would affect a continent and would leave America with the ability to still retaliate against their attacker via nuclear submarines located in the seas.

The sun poses the greater risk of the two. Experts generally believe that electromagnetic surges from the sun on this large of a scale tend to happen on an average of once every one hundred years. An event on this scale hit Earth in 1859, but electronics were just on the verge of being used for wide-scale communications and did not inflict the damage it could do today. Known as the Carrington Event, it caused severe disruption to telegraph communications, shocking some telegraph operators and even starting fires when the sparks jumped and burned the paper used by these operators.

A less strong, but still damaging event occurred in March of 1989 when Canada took the brunt of a solar flare. Six million Canadians went without power for nine hours when power transmission from the Hydro Quebec station had been disrupted. Even power transformers in the United States had felt some of the effects of the flare. Despite all this damage, this event was nowhere near the scale of the Carrington Event.

In July of 2012, a similar event to Carrington occurred and had just missed Earth's trajectory by one week. If it had hit Earth directly, the results could have sent us a few hundred years in the past from a technological standpoint. Computers, televisions, transportation, communications...everything would have been knocked out.

So what happens if Earth is hit directly by a solar flare on the scale of the Carrington Event? The real possibility of millions of deaths all over the world would be almost definite. For all those who are in life and death situations in hospitals or depend on electronics of some form to keep them alive, their lives would be at jeopardy. Those in extremely warm regions, the lack of air conditioning could pose a real problem, especially when clean and safe water might not be able to be properly distributed to them, let alone to people in less intense climates around the world.

For those who do survive, the world would most likely go back to a city-state type of government system to get by until things could be rebuilt. Until then, even though we have the luxury of doing so much by computer, it would be best for the world to make sure that everything has a hard copy. Medical texts/records, historical records, and even things as simple as photographs.

Stealing Signs Poor Form in Baseball?

Photo taken by Daniel Millhouse of Derek Norris, San Diego Padres Catcher

 

In almost any aspect of baseball, signals are given to communicate on the field to prevent your opponent from knowing what you want to be done. Catcher signal pitchers, base coaches signal hitters and runners, and infielders signal each other to communicate who will be covering what base.

These signals are communicate through all kinds of hand motions, displaying numbers using fingers, and touching various parts of the body. Nothing that would be obvious to their opponents. A third base coach might want the batter to bunt by doing a series of motions then touching the brim of his hat to let his player know what he wants him to do.

Some players today on the Major League Level claim there is an unwritten rule of "no sign stealing", but is there really? Coaches get angry when they see a corner fielder charging in toward the batter when they thought they signaled for a surprise bunt. Catchers and pitchers get angry when they think the runner on second base is signaling the batter what pitch is coming. If there is an unwritten rule then what is the point of these signals that at times can seem like a ridiculous set of motions to someone that doesn't know the game.

Whose fault is it really when a sign is stolen? If the sign is easy to pickoff, then the fault should lie with the coach, not the opponent who was able to figure out what the signal meant. What would be the point of doing the "secret signals" to a player if no matter what, the opponent can't react to it if they picked off the sign? If that is the case, why not have a coach yell "steal" to a base runner? If the other team can't react to the signal they stole, it's essentially the same thing.

Another question should be asked...if it's an unwritten rule at the professional level, then why on the amateur levels is it considered a positive when you can steal your opponent's signs? Little league coaches will tell players to watch the coach to see if they notice a pattern to the base coach's signals to his players. At the high school and college levels, catchers will signal a series of numbers to his pitcher before flashing the indicator to the pitcher know what pitch he wants him to throw.

Just as recently as Game 3 of the American League Championship Series, a team was accused of stealing signals. In this case, Royals players claimed that the Blue Jays were stealing signals from the catcher to the pitcher.

"That's your fault," Royals pitcher Edison Volquez said before Game 4 to ABC News reporters. "You've got to hide the ball and have better communication with the catcher giving you signs when you're pitching. So it's nothing wrong with it. We just have to hide the ball and give multiple signs to hide it from them."

Multiple signs is what catchers do on all levels up to the Major League level. So why should it be an unwritten rule at the highest level? Nowhere in the baseball rule book on any level say you can't. There are unwritten rules that are just in nature, but this is not one of them.

Baseball isn't the only one that has had these problems. Football teams have made the same complaint, but in the same manner, if it is illegal to steal a coaches signal to his quarterback, then why go through all the motions. Just hold a big sign up that says something like "swing right". If the defense acts according, the coach can claim the defense stole the signal.

It is just part of the game and has been for as long as baseball has been around. If it was really a poor form of the sport, then why teach kids how to do it while they play at the amateur level and applaud them when they do it well?

Maybe the team that gets their signs stolen should work on better signs and stop their whining.

Halloween Asteroid to Buzz by Earth

Nine days from now, on Halloween night, our planet will be getting buzzed by an asteroid that will be flying nearby. Hurling through space at 78,830 miles-per-hour, the asteroid is expected to safely pass by Earth with no problem. The asteroid that is called 2015 TB145, will be as close as 300,000 miles from Earth, which is just a little farther that our own moon at 238,900 miles.

This particular asteroid is fairly large in size at 2,034 feet in diameter. In comparison, the asteroid that exploded over the Russian city of Chelyabinsk in 2013 was only 66 feet across before it disintegrated and caused a load of damage to buildings.

Now while NASA has informed us that this won't be a threat to the world, it wasn't discovered until three weeks before it is scheduled to fly by the planet. If this had be a serious threat to colliding with Earth, this wouldn't be enough time for us to do anything. Even the best prospective plans that scientists have come up with would require more advanced notice than three weeks. We would be doomed. I'm sure there might be a conspiracy nut or two that might be claiming that 2015 TB145 IS a planet killer and that NASA isn't being truthful with us.

Now what if this isn't an asteroid that will miss us? JPL scientists estimate an asteroid the size of a house, traveling at 30,000 miles-per-hour would be approximately equal to the power of the energy released from the atomic bomb that flattened Hiroshima. 2015 TB145 is traveling over twice as fast and is at least forty times larger. This is supposed to be the biggest asteroid scheduled to pass by Earth until 2027, so if this one passes, at least for the next twelve years, they won't be as big.

This only exacerbates the need for humanity to A) develop a way to find potential "Earth Killers" sooner, B) develop a way to destroy them when they are getting too close, C) and eventually find a way to colonize planets or other planetary bodies to preserve the human species.

While this asteroid will be flying close by and is over 2,000 feet in diameter, you'll still need a telescope to catch a visual of it on Halloween night. That is if you're not too busy passing out candy.

Photo Courtesy of NASA

Themed Parties, Not Just for Halloween

Why must Halloween be the only time of the year for themed parties? Of course other holidays have their own themed parties such as July 4th barbeques with American flags and good food being cooked up on the grill, but parties rarely costume themes unless it is a Halloween party.

Masquerade balls used to be something that people who aren't hurting for money would have, but even then many times, attendees of these of these balls only wore a domino mask with something formal. Not much of a costume at all. Kids on the other hand sometimes have pajama party sleepovers with their friends, but these parties usually dissipate after the kids hit their early teenage years.

Adults, ones of average means and usually between the ages of twenty-one to their mid-forties, don't tend to have a themed party beyond the ones that celebrate the holidays. They may have get-togethers, but they usually involve little more than someone buying some beer and ordering up a pizza or two. While hanging out with friends is the key point of the get-together, sometimes a party theme adds enthusiasm to the party and can even sway the friends that were on the fence to show up, to actually attend the party.

Hugh Hefner, founder of Playboy throws one of these parties every year that all of Hollywood, models, and various other celebrities look forward to every year. The theme is Midsummer Night's Dream Party. Now being a Playboy party, many of the models do show up in lingerie obviously, but there is also a Shakespearean quality to the theme because the party is named of the famous playwright's work.

Once again, a party for people of means, but it's not something that a person couldn't do in their own home and why not? When Americans are working harder for their money than ever and have less spending cash available, something like a themed party could be something cheap to throw and enjoy if all those attending pitch in. Bring your own beer or alcohol would be a start since that is usually the most expensive thing a party host has to pay for. Wear your own themed costumer, whether it be an adult pajama party, a beach themed party, a superhero party, or anything else you can come up with, only cost money to the costume wearer. Even then, most people have elements of most of these themes in their own closet without having to spend too much money.

Now think back to the parties you have thrown that weren't centered around a particular holiday. Can you remember the specifics to any of these parties? Now think about it. Would that party be more memorable if it had a theme to it? Say you threw a party with a "Favorite Movie Character" theme, wouldn't it be more memorable if you had friends show up as Jay and Silent Bob? Charlie Chaplin's tramp? Marilyn Monroe's dress raising "The Girl" from Seven Year Itch? Not only would the parties be more memorable, but an element of fun would be added to it that your average party doesn't have.

So why must kids and rich people have all the fun? Everyone should be given an opportunity to not just party, but have a memorable one that creates longer lasting memories.

The Top 8 Fictional Cities to Live in

For those of us who read books and/or comics, watch movies and/or television, and play games, we don't just enjoy the characters that we read about and their adventures, but sometimes we also get lost in the cities or towns they live in. Many times, we wish the city was a real place. One that we could visit in person whether on vacation or even live in. Some fictional cities can be hell on Earth, but many others can seem like a utopia. The following is a list of fictional cities that might be the best ones to live in...

1. Hill Valley, California: As seen in the movie trilogy Back to the Future, this city seems to be the epitome of a nice and quiet town that has a low crime rate depending which timeline is in effect. Obviously Biff destroyed the city when he built his casino, but Marty was successful in restoring Hilly Valley back to normal. Even in the 80s, it appeared that it was the type of town that you could watch a movie with your date and get a milkshake afterward without worrying about being mugged. The city appeared to have everything you needed while still keeping the appeal of being small enough not to be overcrowded.

2. Storybrooke, Maine: The town that everyone in the television show Once Upon a Time is stuck in, provides everything a person could need and more. Storybrooke has a museum, a pawnshop that is more like an antique store, a beach, a low crime rate, and best of all, apparently no one ages. Despite being stuck in Storybrooke for nearly 30 years, not a single resident aged a single day. Now of course the Evil Queen from Snow White has been the mayor, but for most of the residents, she was a good mayor unless you're Emma Swan. Hell, the town only needed one sheriff and no deputies when she first discovered the town.

3. Basin City: From the graphic novels and the Sin City movies, this black and white city has a high crime rate, but only for those who are looking for trouble. Especially once Roark Jr. was arrested and almost killed by Hartigan, after Roark kidnapped little Nancy. Of Course, if the Roark family would just be removed from the city entirely, Basin City would probably be a lot better. Cardinal Roark was hiding Kevin's obsession with cannibalizing the prostitutes of Basin City and Senator Roark seemed to have his hands in every little element of crime in the city. Otherwise, if you're an adult, the town wasn't too bad. There was a neighborhood in the city with prostitutes who looked like models and who ran their neighborhood without interference from the police (and crime free by the way), and a strip club named Kadie's which featured some of the best looking strippers in the world. It didn't appear to be that hard to find a card game to get into either. While this might not be considered wholesome, it seemed that as long as you kept to yourself, you'd be okay.

4. Shermer, Illinois: The city where dreams come true--if you're a teenager. The hometown to all of John Hughes' 80s characters such as Ferris Bueller, the kids of The Breakfast Club, the kids of Sixteen Candles, the pair of kids who engineered their dream girl out of a doll, and an uncle by the name of Buck tries to win over the hearts of his family. Shermer provides so much appeal for those who want to move there, that even Jay and Silent Bob get lost in Illinois, searching for the city that doesn't exist.

5. The Citadel: Famous for being the deep-space city with five wings and a ring spinning to keep gravity going, this city in the stars has 13.2 million residents. Supposedly thought to be constructed by the extinct race called the Protheans, the Asari discovered the abandoned space city/ship after they learned how to control the mass relays. multiple species soon joined them and a council was formed to keep the peace between the different alien races. The space station features parks, shopping, restaurants, apartment-like homes, buildings dedicated to running the ship, and can protect itself from outside attacks.

6. Bedrock: The stone-age town that calls itself home to the Flintstone family, is probably one of the most green friendly fictional cities. Everything is run on manual power, the use of rocks to make things work, and even smaller dinosaurs and mammals to do the rest. It's doubtful that a wooly mammoth shower hurts the environment in any way. It's also doubtful that a care powered by Fred's bare feet can hurt the environment either. What does seem evident is that food portions are massive and Bedrock must be located in an area that sustains a nice climate year-round.

7. Mayberry, North Carolina: A peaceful town where everyone knows each other, crime never appears to be a problem. The only resident of the Mayberry jail only appears to be Otis, the town drunk. In all honesty, it's hard to come up with a reason why they need even two law enforcement officers who appear to work the same shift (Andy and Barney). The downfalls of the city could be that if you're looking for something to do other than hunt or fish, you're probably out of luck. Even the bar that Otis gets drunk at is never seen.

8. Smallville, Kansas: Sure a storm of kryptonite rained down while a space pod carrying a baby Kryptonian landed near the Kent farm, but other than that, the town was pretty peaceful. In the TV series Smallville, there does appear to be a lot more drama than what the comic book version of the town deals with. The comic book town appears to be fairly quiet though and almost completely free of the tornados that Kansas is known for. In the small chance something does happen, Superman finds himself in town just as the right moment.

Photo: Screencap from the movie "Sin City: A Dame to Kill For"

2015 Millhouse MLB Awards

It's that time of year again. With the Major League Baseball season coming to an end and the playoffs around the corner, it's time to announce the winners of the Millhouse 2015 MLB Awards.

American League:
MVP: Josh Donaldson...This was a real close race between Donaldson of the Blue Jays and Mike Trout of the ANAHEIM Angels. Very close in all their stats, the most notable differences between the two players was in the RBI's department. Josh Donaldson led the league with 123 RBI's compared to Trout's. In the runs department, Donaldson also led the league with 122 runs compared to Trout's 103. Trout did field better during the season, playing at a Gold Glove level, but Donaldson wasn't a bad fielder either. Donaldson also was the motivational leader that helped boost his team's play higher while Trout's slump in the month of August was one of the major factors to costing the Angels a wild card spot in the playoffs. 2nd: Trout, 3rd: Nelson Cruz

Cy Young: Dallas Keuchel...in a fairly close race, Keuchel edges David Price out for Cy Young. Keuchel was the pitching leader of the Astros quicker than expected ascent in the baseball standings. In the preseason Millhouse predictions, the Astros were predicted to take third place with about a .500 winning percentage. The biggest difference between Keuchel and Price was their quality starts. Keuchel, even when leaving the game with the opponent in the lead, would leave his team in a better scenario more often than Price. For those who follow sabermetrics, this reflects on Keuchel's WAR which was at 7.2 compared to Price's 3.6. 2nd: Price 3rd: Sonny Gray

Rookie of the Year: Carlos Correa...in what turned out to be a battle between the shortstops, the much anticipated debut of Astros' Carlos Correa didn't disappoint. Correa led AL rookies in homeruns while Francisco Lindor of the Indians led AL rookies in batting average. Lindor had a slightly better glove. Correa also led all shortstops in the American League in homeruns as well. The difference maker is how much they meant to their respective teams. Correa became the motivational leader in his clubhouse, while Lindor played more silently and earned some his biggest hits this season in less clutch scenarios. 2nd: Lindor 3rd: Miguel Sano

Fireman of the Year: Andrew Miller...the Yankees had two relievers that could have contended for this if given the chance. Miller had a WHIP of .86, 26 saves, and a 2.04 ERA. 2nd: Zach Britton, 3rd: Huston Street

Breakout Hitter: Xander Bogaerts
Breakout Pitcher: Shawn Tolleson

Manager of the Year: John Gibbons of the Blue Jays...this was a team that wasn't predicted to be a 93 win team and yet they did. They entered the season, losing their best pitcher in Spring Training, being criticized for having subpar pitching, and a subpar bullpen. The Blue Jays started the season hanging their hopes on several star rookies who ended up not panning out, only to find a couple of other rookies and rarely used players that stepped up big for the team. 2nd: Jeff Bannister 3rd: Ned Yost

Silver Sluggers: Catcher-Brian McCann, 1B-Chris Davis, 2B-Robinson Cano, 3B-Josh Donaldson, SS-Xander Bogaerts, OF-Mike Trout, Lorenzo Cain, JD Martinez, DH-Edward Encarnacion

All-Rookie Team: Catcher-James McCann, 1B-Mark Canha, 2B-Devon Travis, 3B-Miguel Sano, SS-Carlos Correa, OF-Eddie Rosario, Billy Burns, Delino Deshields, Pitcher-Carson Smith


National League:
MVP: Bryce Harper...in a closer race at the halfway point of the season between Harper and Paul Goldschmidt, Harper broke away in the second half. He had a .330 batting average, 42 homers, 99 RBI's, and an on-base percentage of .460. 2nd: Paul Goldschmidt 3rd: Joey Votto

Cy Young: Jake Arrieta...in the closest award race in the NL, Arrieta just edges Zack Greinke out. True Arrieta's ERA was 1.77 compared to Greinke's 1.66, but Arrieta had less run support and struck out more through the season. For those into traditional stats, Arrieta also led the NL with 22 wins compared to Greinke's 19. 2015 turned out to be the year of the pitcher in the National League as at least five candidates could have made decent arguments for the Cy Young Award. 2nd: Greinke 3rd: Clayton Kershaw

Rookie of the Year: Kris Bryant...at the half, Joc Pederson looked like the possible favorite for the National League Rookie of the Year, but Bryant turned up his production. He tied Pederson for most homers by a rookie in the NL and had a .275 batting average compared to Pederson's declining .210. Bryant even stole 13 bases compared to the faster Pederson. 2nd: Justin Bour 3rd: Jung Ho Kang

Fireman of the Year: Mark Melancon...51 saves, a .93 WHIP, and a 2.23 ERA wins the award for this Pirates reliever. 2nd: Jeurys Familia 3rd: Aroldis Chapman

Breakout Hitter: AJ Pollock
Breakout Pitcher: Carlos Martinez

Manager of the Year: Clint Hurdle...the Pittsburgh Pirates entered the realm of playoff possibilities last season, so it wasn't a surprise that Clint Hurdle was one of the better managers in the MLB. Getting 98 wins was a lot more than most people predicted, especially in possibly the toughest division in Major League Baseball. Even though 98 wins only earned the Pirates second place in the NL Central, they will be accompanied by the St. Louis Cardinals, who won the division and the Chicago Cubs who won the other wild card spot.

Silver Sluggers: Catcher-Buster Posey, 1B-Paul Goldschmidt, 2B-Dee Gordon, 3B-Nolan Arenado, SS-Jhonny Peralta, OF-Bryce Harper, AJ Pollock, Andrew McCutchen, Pitcher-Madison Bumgarner

All-Rookie Team: Catcher-Kyle Schwarber, 1B-Justin Bour 2B-Addison Russell, 3B-Kris Bryant, SS-Jung Ho Kang, OF-Joc Pederson, Randall Grichuk, Odubel Herrera, Pitcher-Noah Syndergaard

Photo by Daniel Millhouse

Multi-Talented Actors/Athletes/Musicians

Actors, athletes, and musicians that have gained fame are often seen in a one-dimensional view by those who enjoy their work. When someone shows talent in multiple aspects of life, such as music and acting for example, people often criticize that famous person for branching out into something other than what they are known for. In reality, most people in the world are talented in more than one aspect in life which is also true for celebrities and athletes too.

The following is a list of celebrities and athletes that almost took a different route in life that could have derailed their fame or made them famous for something else.

1. The Undertaker: The WWE's legend, perhaps the best wrestler of all-time, played college basketball. He played two years at the junior college level before transferring to Texas-Weslayan University. During this same time, the Deadman discovered his love of wrestling and made the choice to try to go pro. After several failed character gimmicks, Mark Calaway developed the Undertaker personality and has been a star since.

2. Dexter Holland: The lead singer to the Orange County punk rock band, The Offspring, could have been a successful college professor instead. He has a B.S. in biology, a M.S. in molecular biology, and was heading towards a PhD in molecular biology at USC before he found some success in the music industry. By the mid-90s, The Offspring had produced several hits including "Come Out and Play" and "Self Esteem". The hit band released multiple albums that went multi-platinum and because of that success, Holland could have easily ignored his schooling. Instead, Holland jumped back into microbiology and became a doctoral student at the Laboratory of Viral Oncology Proteomics Research at USC. He also created the successful hot sauce, Gringo Bandito.

3. Jason Lee: The famous actor known for being a mainstay in Kevin Smith movies and for in being in movies and TV shows such as My Name is Earl, Almost Famous, A Guy Thing, and The Incredibles, was actually a famous skateboarder before he was an actor. He cofounded Stereo Sound Agency, known as Stereo Skateboards, with fellow skater Chris "Dune" Pastras. He was featured in several skateboarding videos in the late 80s that grew his fame as an athlete. On a whim, he tried out for a part in Mallrats and landed a starring role as Brody.

4. Geena Davis: Known for her starring roles in movies such as Thelma & Louise and A League of Their Own, she was also an accomplished archer. She was so good in fact that she tried out and just missed making it to the United States Olympic team that went to Sydney in 2000.

5. Vanilla Ice: Obviously known for his hit single "Ice Ice Baby", the rapper rose to fame along the same time as MC Hammer. Shook down by Suge Knight for the rights of his music, Vanilla Ice eventually faded out of the music scene. Before being known as the most famous white rapper until Eminem came around, Vanilla Ice was a dirt bike racer as a kid. He was so good at it that he won three Grand National Championships. Later in life, after his music career faded out, he spent his money in real estate, flipping houses and making big profits. He was so good at this that he even got his own TV show flipping houses.

6. Neil Patrick Harris: Originally famous for being Doogie Howser and then later for the hit show How I Met Your Mother, Harris is also an accomplished magician. He currently serves as the President of the Board of Directors for Hollywood's Magic Castle and often shows off his abilities on the various shows he appears in.

7. Steve Martin: Known for being a comedy legend and actor, he is talented in magic, as well as banjo playing, and writing. As a banjo player, he won a Grammy for Best Bluegrass Album in 2010 for The Crow: New Songs for a 5-String Banjo. He has also written two best-selling novellas Shopgirl and The Pleasure of My Company.

8. Danica McKellar: Known for her role as Winnie Cooper on the hit television show Wonder Years, McKellar went on to UCLA and earned of B.S. in mathematics, summa cum laude. She co-authored the Chayes-McKellar-Winn theorem and wrote four books on mathematics aimed at teenagers. Three of those books made it to the children's best seller list for the New York Times. She continues to act as well, guest-starring on shows such as The Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, and appearing on West Wing as Will Bailey's sister. She even appeared on ABC's hit show, Dancing With the Stars.

9. Jennifer Tilly: If it weren't for her career in acting, Tilly would be on tour, playing professional poker and winning more often than she already does. Using her sexpot image from the movies to her advantage, she will often wear low-cut tops at the tables to distract her fellow players. She has a World Series of Poker bracelet in 2005 and has finished a dozen times in a money spot. She has finished eleven more times as a money spot winner with World Poker Tour, being crowned the Ladies Night Champion and WPT Bellagio Cup 5K Champion.

10. Hedy Lamarr: So talented in the sciences, Lamarr was inducted into the Inventors Hall of Fame in 2014. Her ideas and inventions have been incorporated into modern Wi-Fi technology, CDMA used by some cell phone companies, and Bluetooth. During World War II she developed technology that would prevent torpedo signals from being jammed by opponents, but the technology wasn't fully utilized until the blockade of Cuba in 1962. Other inventions included improved traffic lights and carbonated drinks that she said tasted like Alka Seltzer. She not only had the brains, but also the sex appeal as she was considered one of the most beautiful actresses during her time.

Photo: Screencap taken of Danica McKellar on Dancing With the Stars

20 Years After Kirby Puckett's Last Game

On September 28th of 1995, the Minnesota Twins faced off against the Cleveland Indians. Little did they know that the possibility that their most beloved player's career would abruptly end that night. Outfielder Kirby Puckett stepped up to the plate to face all-star pitcher Dennis Martinez. Struck with a fastball to the face, Puckett's jaw was broken and his season was over several days earlier than the rest of his teammates.

By the next spring, Puckett had healed from his broken jaw and was once again tearing up pitchers in Spring Training, hitting .344. He woke up just days before the regular season was to start and couldn't see out of his right eye. He was diagnosed with glaucoma and placed on the disabled list for the first time in his entire career. Kirby would later announce his retirement when doctors were unable to help him recover from his blindness.

Twenty years later to this day, his presence could still be felt at Target Field, home to the Twins. A statue stands in front of the park now, recreating Puckett's defining game during Game 6 of the 1991 World Series when he made a catch against the outfield wall and hit the game winning homerun in extra innings to force a Game 7.

Though Puckett's overall stats don't appear to be legendary (207 homeruns, 1085 RBI's, and 2304 base hits), he was one of the best players of his generation and voted by Sporting News Magazine as one of the top 100 players of all-time. When he retired, Puckett had the second highest career batting average by a right hander at .318, just behind Yankees legend Joe DiMaggio. In his 12 year long career, Kirby was voted into the all-star game 10 times, received votes for AL MVP 8 times, won the Gold Glove and Silver Slugger for his position 6 times, and was a constant top 10 finisher every season in categories such as hits, batting average, doubles, and total bases.

Despite his appearance, Puckett covered a large amount of territory in centerfield for the Twins, often leading the American League in putouts and assists. He also had speed and would steal bases for the Twins. He started his career as a leadoff hitter, but in 1986, with the help of hitting instructor and former Twins great Tony Oliva, Puckett became the Twins number three hitter and hit 31 homers.

Unfortunately almost 10 years ago, Puckett suffered a hemorrhagic stroke in Arizona and after a surgery failed to relieve pressure on his brain, his family and friends were notified that the end was near. He passed away within a day, being the second youngest MLB Hall-of-Famer to be inducted while still alive, to die--he was 45 (Lou Gehrig died at 37).

"There was no player I enjoyed playing against more than Kirby. He brought such joy to the game. He elevated the play of everyone around him," Fisk said in a statement to the Hall of Fame.

Picture: 1986 Topps Kirby Puckett card