A Real Role Model

A couple of things that bug me and then on to the real entry..

Anna Nicole Smith: WHO CARES???? Shut up about it already.

Hollywood Celebs and who they back in Politics: WHO CARES??? Celebrities live in a seriously convoluted world and don’t deal with “everyday” problems like the rest of us. How would they who the best person is run the country when they don’t even live in the “real” world?

(Stepping off of my soapbox)

Ok.. I was emailing with a friend of mine, LJ, the other day and she told me the coolest story. I just had to pass it along. So, with her permission:
LJ has two kids. Jake, 4 and Hannah is about 5-6 months. Jake is the reason or this story. LJ and her family live close to Philadelphia, PA and her husband (JP) and Jake are hockey fans. Of course, the Flyers are the NHL team for that area and little Jake had picked Michal Handzus as his favorite player. As with every major league sport, trades are inevitable and Handzus was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks before the 2006-2007 season started. Jake was crushed that he wouldn’t be able to see his favorite player in Philly anymore. Well, Jake and his father wrote a letter to Handzus and told him how upset Jake had been about the trade and they promised to come to Chicago to see him play. Handzus, in the meantime, had been injured and was recouping from knee surgery when he ran across Jake’s letter. Handzus actually called JP on his cell phone and asked if they were still coming to Chicago. When JP answered, “Yes,” Handzus said he would love to meet up with Jake.
During their trip to Chicago, Michal Handzus and his girlfriend met with Jake and his father. They all went to lunch together and then he took them to the Chicago locker room so they could meet the rest of the Blackhawks. LJ said Jake was so excited about the entire day. How cool is that???
You hear, almost daily, in the news about Professional Athletes getting in trouble, beating their wives, doing drugs, cheating, etc, etc, etc. Every time they mess up, it’s on the news. But, hardly ever, do you get hear a story that is actually “news worthy” because it’s a feel good story. People want dirt, people want others to do bad so their own lives don’t look so bad from a different perspective. I, for one, like the good news stories. This is a feel good story about a professional athlete that took time out of his schedule to help out a genuine fan. A real “nice guy” in the world of cry-baby, spoiled brat, millionaire athletes. (Note: I’m not talking about just hockey players, I’m lumping ALL professional athletic forums in that negative generalization) I know there are many “nice guys” in professional sports, so don’t think I dislike them all.. I’m just noting you see and hear more about the bad stuff they do than the good stuff.. This says a lot about Michal Handsuz.. I don’t know the guy from Adam’s Housecat, but I’m a fan now because he’s “keeping it real.” Of course, no news media deemed this meeting worthy because Jake is just a regular kid. So, I’ll use my own "media outlet" to tell the story. On that note: Please remember that this is a special thing that Mr. Handsuz did for Jake out of the goodness in his heart. It's not an everyday occurance that's mentioned here and don't get upset if your favorite athelete doesn't do the same. Sometimes timing is just as important as the request itself. Timing just happened to be perfect in this instance.
A salute to you Mr. Handsuz. And, if my Thrashers can’t win Lord Stanley’s Cup, I hope your Blackhawks do. (Although, with the 2007 stats, it’s not going to happen for either of them this year)

The picture is Handsuz, JP and Jake while they were in Chicago.