One Shot.

"Look if you had One shot, or One opportunity..."

You better lose yourself in the music, the moment 

You own it, you better never let it go go 

You only get one shot, do not miss your chance to blow 

This opportunity comes once in a lifetime yo

My current(always a classic) Kick-some-Ass song: "Lose Yourself" Eminem. Pretty fitting for the NCAA Division 1 Championship weekend.

If my husband is reading this is, he is calling "BS!" He hears my rants of dislike for Eminem because I am sick of the constant Martyr songs. The world is always out to get Eminem and it drives me CRAZY! Alas- It sells albums- LOTS of them. That is why it is kind of hard for me to admit, "Lose Yourself" is on loop on my Ipod (do people still use these???) It has more uses than motivating Athletes, even on a working mom, 6.5 months pregnant, trying to make her mark in the Professional Marketing world.    

Look, if you had one shot, or one opportunity 

To seize everything you ever wanted in one moment 

Would you capture it? Or just let it slip? 

No one here has to remind any of these NCAA qualifiers that this is their 1 shot, 1 opportunity. And that is why I have mad-respect for Wrestlers. There is no one on that mat with them that they can depend on to pick up where they fumble, re-bound when they miss, bum-rush a predator in their blind-spot. It is 7 of the most intense minutes in sports- Who is going to prove to want it more?

(Outro) 

You can do anything you set your mind to, man

Yeah, 
His palms are sweaty, knees weak, arms are heavy 
There's vomit on his sweater already, mom's spaghetti 
He's nervous, but on the surface he looks calm and ready 
To drop bombs, but he keeps on forgetting 
What he wrote down, the whole crowd goes so loud 
He opens his mouth, but the words won't come out 
He's choking how, everybody's joking now 
The clock's run out, time's up over, bloah! 
Snap back to reality, oh there goes gravity 
Oh, there goes Rabbit, he choked 
He's so mad, but he won't give up that 
Easy, no 
He won't have it, he knows his whole back's to these ropes 
It don't matter, he's dope 
He knows that, but he's broke 
He's so stagnant that he knows 
When he goes back to his mobile home, that's when it's 
Back to the lab again yo 
This whole rhapsody 
He better go capture this moment and hope it don't pass him 

(Verse 2) 
This soul's escaping, through this hole that is gaping 
This world is mine for the taking 
Make me king, as we move toward a, new world order 
A normal life is boring, but superstardom's close to post mortem 
It only grows harder, homie grows hotter 
He blows it's all over, these hoes is all on him 
Coast to coast shows, he's know as the Globetrotter 
Lonely roads, God only knows 
He's grown farther from home, he's no father 
He goes home and barely knows his own daughter 
But hold your nose 'cause here goes the cold water 
These hoes don't want him no mo', he's cold product 
They moved on to the next schmoe who flows 

He nose dove and sold nada 
So the soap opera is told and unfolds 
I suppose it's old partner, but the beat goes on 
Da da dum da dum da da da da  

(Verse 3) 
No more games, I'ma change what you call rage 
Tear this motherfucking roof off like two dogs caged 
I was playing in the beginning, the mood all changed 
I been chewed up, and spit out, and booed off stage 
But I kept rhyming and stepwritin' the next cypher 
Best believe somebody's paying the pied piper 
All the pain inside amplified by the 
Fact that I can't get by with my nine to five 
And I can't provide the right type of life for my family 
'Cause man, these Goddamn food stamps don't buy diapers 
And it's no movie, there's no Mekhi Phifer, this is my life 
And these times are so hard and it's getting even harder 
Trying to feed and water my seed, plus 
Teeter totter caught up between being a father and a prima donna 
Baby mama drama's screaming on and 
Too much for me to wanna 
Stay in one spot, another day of monotony 
Has gotten me to the point, I'm like a snail 
I've got to formulate a plot or end up in jail or shot 
Success is my only motherfucking option, failure's not 
Mom, I love you, but this trailer's got to go 
I cannot grow old in Salem's Lot 
So here I go it's my shot. 
Feet fail me not 'cause this may be the only opportunity that I got 

(Outro) 

You can do anything you set your mind to, man

Married to Wrestling.: Big Guys need love too.

Married to Wrestling.: Big Guys need love too.

Big Guys need love too.

One of my biggest pet peeves at a tournament is the filing out of fans while wrestling is still in progress. It is not uncommon to have a close-to packed house for the National Anthem and whistles to start the 125-lbers, but before those same whistles are blown for the start of the HWT matches, half of the fans have already decided to call it a day.

Of course I am a bit biased about this topic. I have only ever had a direct personal connection with a 197-HWT wrestler. But now as a coach's wife- I have a connection to all ten NCAA weight classes. Like any other wrestling fan, I can find the appreciation of the different techniques in all weight classes. And I so, badly wish that more fans could find it in them to show support for more than just their favorites. I could not imagine what is is like to be a wrestler, preparing for a make-or-break match while watching the stands file out of the arena in an orderly fashion. Or getting into position for the start of the 2nd period only to hear the chattering of people leaving and a lack of cheering.

It never fails- It is a rant that my husband hears at the end of *every* session- Big Guys need love too!

*NCAAs 2010- Omaha, Nebraska SOLD OUT ARENA HWT Wrestlers Everhart [IU] vs. Kent State Look at the stands...

Wrestling Family- Not just a Myth.

Being as I married into Wrestling, imagen my surprise when wedding plans came with a "Wrestling Family" invite list from my husband's side. I hadn't met any of these people, but many of them made cameos in family stories told 'round the dining room table.

After an insane whirlwind of a day, I was able to finally meet some of these VIP invitees after dinner and main dances on our wedding day. It was like I had been part of the fam the whole time! I was pretty well shocked at their generosity and welcoming arms. And now that I have my own, always growing, "Wrestling Family", I smile at those memories 5 1/2 years ago.

It wasn't necessarily a fluke that my husband's past had included such special people.
It wasn't terribly unheard of that someone could care that much about you and not share in common DNA.
A wrestling family is a real thing and those of us who are lucky enough to say that wrestling is a part of who we are, are lucky enough to experience the bond.
It is just how it is.

And every year, I look forward to...
putting in that Time-Off Request,
planning my St. Patrick's Day festivities in the NCAA choice of location,
packing my suitcase full of Cream and Crimson,
hittin' up the hotel bar
and Hootin' Hollerin' as those very special people start rolling in from near and far- many of whom I hadn't seen since the last NCAA tournament.

Philly or Bust!

Child Abuse Taboo in National Media

I am not one to typically publicly proclaim my political standings- but this is so much more than a political view to me. With the exception of being biased about who I cheer for in wrestling, it will be the only controversial stand I will take on this blog. However, I was moved to share the newsletter I will post at the end.

I received this newsletter on December 14th as a board Member of Prevent Child Abuse for Lawrence County. I had to share.

It is absolutely shocking to me to realize that child abuse is not reported on a national outlet. And why not? We hear about it locally, sometimes as just a passing story, but enough information to make us hold back tears and turn to the person next to us and say "I just don't get it. How could you ever do that to your child??"

And then, onto your local weather. 

But why not make our children a national concern. Why do we have to wait until there are mass murders in schools and a trend to children suicides? Many of these tragic events can be traced back to some kind of child abuse in the past--or present, yet we treat the back story as Taboo. 

If the cycle is not broken- it won't cease. If we don't make an issue out of it- it will continue to received a blind eye and deaf ear. If we don't report it- we will lose another child.

I will never have sympathy for someone who can hurt a child. Someone who can get high on drugs and pull all the teeth of a 4 year old. Someone who can shake an infant to the result of 20+ broken bones. Someone who can beat a child every night for nearly a week until his very unfortunate death. These things I will never understand, because there is absolutely no excuse, no explanation, no JUSTIFICATION for any kind of Child Abuse.

Being a parent is stressful- I do get that. Familiarize yourself with parent-stress phone lines to help you get through those times. Gain a great friend to vent. And never, ever forget to take some time for you- even just 5 minutes.

Read the newsletter below carefully, and please, pass it on.

-Nicole

 

COALITION:  END THE "NATIONAL MEDIA BLACKOUT" ON CHILD ABUSE AND NEGLECT DEATHS IN ORDER TO AID NEEDED REFORMS

“National Epidemic” of Nearly 2,500 Deaths Each Year Covered Significantly Less at National Level Than Other Issues Involving Far Fewer Deaths; Above-Average Child Maltreatment Death Rates in FL, NE, NM, TN, OK, TX, AR, MO, LA, OH, GA and CO Highlighted.

WASHINGTON, D.C. December 14, 2010 Every death is tragic, but why does the national media in the U.S. ignore the nearly 2,500 deaths each year that result from child abuse and neglect?   Why do other issues involving far fewer deaths – such as the H1N1 virus, food-borne illnesses, Toyota accelerator malfunctions and coal mining – get far more attention from major news media outlets?

These are the tough questions that are being posed today by the National Coalition to End Child Abuse Deaths (NCECAD) in calling for an end to the “de facto national media blackout” on coverage of deaths due to child abuse and neglect.    The Coalition stressed that the lack of media attention to U.S. child abuse deaths is the No. 1 impediment to the enactment of needed federal and state reforms, including a seven-step national strategy to curb child deaths due to maltreatment, $3-$5 billion in additional federal funding, and reform of state confidentiality laws.

The little-reported-on national scourge of child abuse and neglect deaths is so severe in the U.S. that it even eclipses the combined number of annual U.S. combat fatalities in Iraq and Afghanistan, according to NCECAD data.   The most current figures show the following annual numbers for much more widely publicized causes of death:  

•    U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan: 479.

•    H1N1 pediatric fatalities: 281.

•    Food borne illnesses: 74.

•    Toyota accelerator malfunction: 34.

•    Coal mining accidents: 33.

•    Total of above: 901.

(See the NCECAD data online at http://www.endchildabusedeaths.org.) 

Though U.S. government reporting tracks only about 1,800 child maltreatment deaths (which is still twice all of the other causes listed above, including combat deaths in Iraq/Afghanistan), flaws in the abuse/neglect reporting system obscure a true child death toll that is estimated at an annual average of nearly 2,500.  The flaws leading to underreporting of child abuse and neglect are, in fact, one of the issues that would be remedied under the Coalition’s recommended reforms. (See below.)  

A search of Google News for ”child abuse deaths” shows more than 700 stories for January-November 2010, with nearly all of the stories being of the local “crime beat” variety and with almost no national coverage in the mix.   This contrasts sharply with much more nationally oriented news reporting on the other topics, including flu deaths (1,180 stories), food illness deaths (over 3,000 stories).   The Coalition emphasized that it in no way is minimizing the importance other causes of death and, instead, is seeking to ensure that child abuse and neglect deaths get the attention they deserve from the news media.

While the child abuse/child neglect crisis is one of major national concern, it also is of particular significance in the top 12 states that are above the national average for child abuse/neglect deaths (2.33 per 100,000 children):  Florida 4.62; Nebraska 3.80; New Mexico 3.78; Tennessee 3.72; Oklahoma 3.42; Texas 3.32; Arkansas 2.99; Missouri 2.95; Louisiana and Ohio (both at 2.71); Georgia 2.67; and Colorado 2.65.

Michael Petit, President, Every Child Matters Education Fund, said:  “The plain truth here is that our nation is suffering from what is nothing short of an epidemic of child abuse and neglect deaths and the U.S. media is turning a blind eye to this problem.   We are here today to call for an end to this de facto national media blackout so that more Americans and policymakers can come to understand the need for action that will otherwise never happen if this crisis continues to lag in obscurity.   This is a real wake-up call for national media, which we are calling on to start doing its job in casting a long-overdue spotlight on child abuse and neglect deaths.”

Scott Burns, executive director, National District Attorneys Association, said:  "A District Attorney's job is not just to prosecute offenders, but to protect victims.  Who is more vulnerable than a child?  There are what experts believe to be nearly 2,500 child abuse and neglect deaths each year in the U.S.  This is staggering compared to the number of widely publicized Toyota accelerator deaths (34), H1N1 deaths (281), and even the number of U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan (479).  While each death is tragic and important, child abuse deaths receive virtually no national media attention.  America can do better."  

Teresa Huizar, director, National Children's Alliance, said: “Child abuse deaths are misunderstood by the public, and often reported by the media, as isolated and largely inexplicable family events.  They are neither.  Rather, they are preventable tragedies and our national shame.  We are calling on policymakers to implement a national strategy to end these needless deaths.” 

Joan Zlotnik, director, Social Work Policy Institute, National Association of Social Workers, said:  “Every day, too many children are abused, neglected and murdered in our communities. The only way to truly protect these vulnerable lives is to address the most serious problems facing families in crisis. Well-trained professionals serving in community-based prevention programs and in adequately funded service agencies are essential, but they are not enough. Our national leaders must decide that vulnerable lives are also valuable lives, and then support policies that make real change possible.” 

SEVEN-POINT PLAN ON U.S. CHILD ABUSE/NEGLECT DEATHS

The following recommendations are supported by the National Coalition to End Child Abuse Deaths: 

1.    Building upon the best of current child protection systems, the government should develop a strategy for stopping maltreatment deaths. It should include public health and social services aimed at strengthening families and preventing maltreatment in the first place: voluntary, universal home visiting, substance abuse and mental health treatment, teen pregnancy prevention, pre-natal care, and other policies proven to work, along with state of the art assessment tools to identify and properly assess those at risk. 

2.    Current levels of federal spending are far below the level needed to protect all children at imminent risk of harm. An estimated $3-$5 billion in additional funds are required, for example, to allow child protective workers and other frontline personnel to have smaller caseloads and better training not only so that they will be better prepared to immediately protect children but so that they will consider lifelong careers in child protection thus bringing needed maturity and experience to the system. Continuing education and training across disciplines should be mandated, focusing especially on licensure, accreditation, and support for sub-specialties. Funds are also needed to provide a wide array of public health and social services to help at-risk kids, including comprehensive in-home services for all children already in the system. 

3.    In consideration of expanded federal spending, states should be required to adopt national standards drawn from existing best practices and policies for protecting children.

4.    Originally intended to protect living child victims from publicity, confidentiality laws have become a hindrance to a better public understanding of child abuse and neglect fatalities. The withholding of information, especially between jurisdictions and between agencies can be detrimental and cost children their lives. Congress should consider modifications to confidentiality laws to allow policy makers, the press, and the public to better understand what protection policies and practices need to be improved in the aftermath of a child's death, while still protecting the rights of children and families.

5.    The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) should standardize definitions and methodologies used to collect state data related to maltreatment deaths and should require states to provide such data to the Department and within and across systems in order to receive federal funds. This would require that state child death review teams   be adequately funded.

6.    HHS, in cooperation with state child protective and public health agencies, should conduct a public education campaign to encourage reporting of child maltreatment, and to enlist communities in the protection of children.  Because much maltreatment and many maltreatment deaths arise from neglect and abuse, neglect should receive equal focus in the campaign and by those involved in child protection.

7.    To better protect children at imminent risk of severe harm, the federal government, led by HHS, and in cooperation with states, should adopt a model protocol for assuring that civil and criminal legal proceedings are closely coordinated between child protection and law enforcement agencies.

ABOUT THE COALITION

The National Coalition to End Child Abuse Deaths is made up of five national organizations that came together following the release of the report "We Can Do Better: Child Abuse and Neglect Deaths in America" at the Summit to End Child Abuse and Neglect Deaths in October 2009. The report recognized the growing number of American children who die each year as a result of child abuse and neglect -- nearly 2,500 -- and several studies suggest that this is a low estimate of the actual number of deaths. Among rich democracies, this rate is three times higher than that of Canada and 11 times higher than that of Italy. The Coalition members are: National Association of Social Workers, National Center for Child Death Review, National Children’s Alliance, Every Child Matters Education Fund and National District Attorneys Association.

MEDIA CONTACT:  Ailis Aaron Wolf, (703) 276-3265 oraawolf@hastingsgroup.com.

EDITOR’S NOTE:  A streaming audio replay of the news event will be available on the Web at http://www.endchildabusedeaths.org as of 5 p.m. EST on December 14, 2010.  

Michael Petit

President

Every Child Matters Education Fund

Homeland Insecurity ...Why new investments in children and youth 

must be a priority for the Obama Administration and the 111th Congress

Thank you for your help in making children a political priority.

Every Child Matters is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization whose mission is to make children a national political priority. For more information, visit www.everychildmatters.org

2000 M St. NW, Suite 203 Washington, DC 20036

First Ladies of Wrestling, llc.

Officially in business.

What started as just an idea for fundraising for the Hoosier Wrestling Club, got my wheels turnin'. And so I decided to run with it.

Unfortunately, a business can't run on just a clever name ;) So what is it that I plan to do with First Ladies of Wrestling, llc.?

1. Preserve the sport of Wrestling. There are plenty of clubs/teams out there that requiring funding from others. First ladies of Wrestling, llc. offers the opportunity for these not-for-profit wrestling organizations to utilize us as a fundraising partner. Such as we are currently doing with the Hoosier Wrestling Club out of Bloomington, IN. There is a few different ways this can take place, depending on the preference of the Club/Team. If interested in fundraising, please email me, Nicole, at imwiththeteam@gmail.com

2. Be an outlet for showing pride in the sport we love. As a fan of wrestling, I grew to become very proud, very dedicated, very excited, and a tad defensive ;) I wore the shirts, I sported some of the fun accessories, but nothing said "I am a Woman, and I love WRESTLING!". Yes, I go to the big NCAA tournaments, I know quite a few alumni-wrestlers from various schools that make these weekends guys-weekends. But I think we can all agree, there is nothing like the passion of a Female Wrestling Fan. Whether you are a Mom, Sister, Aunt, GF/Fiance/Wife- your dedication is A-Mazing. If you are going to park your behind on stadium seating for 8 hours a day, 1, 2 or 3 days at a time, you deserve a shirt that says "I Support a Wrestler!" That ladies, is a full time job.

So what do I plan to offer you?

I have quite a few fun shirt ideas rolling around, and these will be released 1 at a time, with the preceding designs available until officially retired. And don't worry, plenty of other ideas will be released periodically as well.

Spread the word: We are on Facebook- First Ladies of Wrestling. Will update on http:// imwiththeteam.blogspot.com. And will launch a website as soon as possible!

Here is our first shirt- Currently Raising Funds for Hoosier Wrestling Club:




How to Order?

Shirts are $20.00 a piece.

Please copy and paste the 'form' below in an email to imwiththeteam@gmail.com

Name:
Address:
Email address for contact:

Style: Woman or Mother
Color: Bright or Light
Size: S-XL

I will then email you an invoice. I can currently only accept cash (for pick-up orders) or check (made out to First Ladies of Wrestling, llc.). There is a shipping charge that is figured from USPS, this will also be quoted on your invoice.

Gentlemen Only, (except when their) Ladies Forbid (it)

Yet another exciting Alumni Weekend for IU Wrestling. Yet this time we weren't so Stepford Wife.

Erin hitting a sweet drive mid-sentence. Check.
Jaimie's matching clubs and outfit. Check.
Mad Golf-Cart Skills. Check.
Busting out a new set of clubs in the parking lot 30 minutes before the shot-gun start. Check.

Our experience on the course should be sold to Lorne Michaels as a great SNL skit. Stereotypical Women we were- always positive, could find a compliment in the worst of shots, "You Made Contact!". Absolutely Hysterical! Loved every minute of it! And sorry boys- it will definitely happen again ;)

I strongly encourage more ladies to attend next year. It doesn't even have to be a "Guys only weekend infringement". I am sure that we all have enough putting-up-with-a-wrestler material to last us for a Girls' Weekend of our own ;) As far as golfing goes, we require no prerequisites and only have one rule:

"If they don't sell Mulligans, we bring our own :P"

Good Times, looking forward to next September (I'm only guessing).