The Diamondbacks have their swagger on!

Go ahead, give it a shot. Stick your toe into the water and test it out. What am I talking about? I am talking about jumping on the Diamondbacks bandwagon!

Yes, those Arizona D-backs, the team that has found itself firmly ensconced in the cellar the past several years. The team that has lived well below the .500 mark for the past few years when it came to wins.

No, what we have here are the new D-backs, the new “first place” D-backs. Yes, I know, let’s just pause for a second and savor that line. I said “first place” D-backs! Today, for the first time since this time of year in 2008, the D-backs are in first place in the National League west!

They did it by stringing together some amazing wins against the Astros, the Rockies, the Twins and the Braves! Just a few weeks ago this team was heading to their usual place at the bottom of the west standings. But then something happened along the way… the team found its’ swagger.

The team found out what true fans have known all along, they are winners. They just needed a man who demanded the most out of them.

Coach Kirk Gibson knows what it’s like to want to win so much, you will it to happen. I don’t even have to remind everyone what happened when he limped up to the plate during the 1988 World Series and hit a clutch home run. No one expected he would be able to do it, but Gibson did.

And now it’s that swagger he has brought to this team that is making the difference. This team is not made up of a group of overpaid superstars. No, this team is made up of a group of guys with a passion to prove people wrong. They want to prove they belong in the conversation when it comes to talk about the best teams in baseball!

Passion! It is a beautiful thing. This D-backs team is full of passion. Right now they are full of confidence. They are trying things they haven’t done for years. Things like hit and runs, steals, and ballsy base running!

They are out there playing like a bunch of kids, kids who love what they are doing. But they are just following the biggest kid of all, Coach Gibson.

I tip my hat to every one of the players and coaches on this team that believed, that believed they could win, and they are doing it.

So folks, jump on this bandwagon because all I can say is it’s going to be a hell of a fun ride!!! Come swagger with them!

Sue Green, Tempe

Photo of Kirk Gibson and the boys in blue by Flickr user Mr. Littlehand | Dad and daughter at the game photo by Robin J. Phillips

Wordless Wednesday ... prayers for Haiti

People come to the aid of a wounded man on Jan. 12, 2010 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. A 7.0 earthquake rocked Haiti today, followed by at least a dozen aftershocks, causing widespread devastation in the capital of Port-au-Prince. (Photo by Frederic Dupoux/Getty Images)

There really are no words.


To add this or another (free) photo to your blog, check here.

The Football Team That Never Gave Up!

I woke up on Friday morning and got a sign, a sign that this was going to be an amazing day! The reason, the 36 members of the Carl Hayden football team woke up as winners today according to the headlines in the paper. But in my book, the players on this team have been winners every time they took the field.

You see, the last time this high school football team in Phoenix Arizona actually won a game was back in 2002, 66 games ago!

Back when I was in high school, "back in the day", Carl Hayden was a force to be reckoned with. Their team was one of the powerhouse teams in the city. But something happened, and they began to lose. First one game, then another, then another. Before anyone knew it, their loss total was in the double digits, then 20, then 30 then 40, 50, 60, 66.

This was one of the longest losing streaks in the country. But these kids, and their coach were not losers. They kept trying. Even though some teams were bigger, or stronger, or more talented, these student's suited up every Friday and took the field.

They never gave up, knowing that one day they would stop this streak, and begin a new one. Well, that day came on Thursday night against San Luis. The Carl Hayden falcons won 44 to 21, and the crowd went crazy.I almost started crying watching the players jumping all around, and the crowd streaming on to the field!

Check out some photos.

Coach Cleveland Dansby, the man who took over coaching the team in 2005, finally got his win, telling reporters that he was relieved, and that the community and students deserved this night of celebration. But I think the lucky ones tonight are all of us who got to share in this celebration.

This reaffirmed for me that no matter how tough things get, you can't give up and stop, otherwise you miss out on the moment of finally reaching your goal. Congratulations to all the players and former players at Carl Hayden who didn't stop, and didn't give up!

Sue, Tempe

The Most Amazing Last Lunch

I have eaten in some of the finer restaurants, you know, the ones where you have like ten forks, beautiful white linens on the tables, and even a so called foot stool for your purse. Yes, a foot stool. I was sort of shocked when I saw it as well.

Getting back to the subject, I have experienced fine dining, but nothing as fine as the lunch my students treated me to this past week. No, this lunch was special, not just because of what the chef's cooked up, but because my students thought enough of me to want to do something special.


It all started on thursday morning when Jeff put his head inside my office and said, "don't get your lunch today". He said it with a big smile across his face. About an hour later another of my students came into my office and said, "whatever you do, don't go get your lunch." When I asked what was going on, he just smiled and said just wait.

At about 12:30 I was starting to get a little hungry. I tried to find the students to see what was going on, but they had disappeared. At about 1pm I was more than a little peckish. I was starving, and starting to count out some change for the vending machine. That's when Emily spied me and hollered "don't you dare. Hang on, I will try to find them."

At about 1:15 they walked into the office carrying several bags of food, and told me to sit down at the table. Then, they opened the bags and I felt I had died and gone to heaven. They could have bought me anything for lunch, but no, they knew the exact thing to get me.
They opened up the boxes with huge smiles on their faces and then waited. I took one look, let out a squeal, and felt my mouth start to water. They had driven down to LoLo's and got me chicken and waffles! OK,OK if you have never had it before you might not be able to appreciate the two amazing flavors together, the sweet of the maple syrup and butter, and the saltiness of the hot, crunchy chicken. My mouth is just watering describing it.

They were so proud of themselves. I think I had maybe mentioned chicken and waffles once, and they remembered! We sat for the next hour eating and laughing and talking. It was the most amazing hour, and I wish all of you could have been a part of it.
I know my students are just a week away from graduating, and we will keep in touch through emails and phone calls, but I will truly miss every one of them.

I am so happy I have this memory of our last lunch together, and will treasure it always.

Lolo's is not the only place frying up chicken and waffles. You can find restaurants all across the country specializing in this Haute cuisine. Check out this throwdown between food network and Melba's!


Sue, Tempe

The Death of a South African Journalist

We started this blog last year because we wanted to share some of the great moments in life. We wanted a chance to share stories about perfect moments, whether they are the birth of a child, the perfect catch, or an amazing day spent lazing away on the couch. Perfect moments.

Well, today I want to share some sad news. This week a young journalist that I met last year on a trip to South Africa died in a crash. Her name was Lungile Dlamini. She was an amazing young woman, and would have told amazing stories as a journalist.

I met Lungile on my first night in Johannesburg after I had checked into a dorm room for my stay at Wits University. I was having trouble logging onto a computer, and she was kind enough to try and help me, this stranger from America.

There are two things I really remember about Lungile, her amazing smile, and her committment to becoming a journalist. Over the next two weeks I got a chance to spend time with Lungile, and I tried to absorb her passion for journalism.


I talked one of my students into doing a story on Lungile, as a 21 year old person in the world with a lot to say. We were just able to get the story shot before we had to get back to the states, and I am so happy we got Lungile, and her smile and her passion on tape. Emily Graham put together the story, and she has now posted it on YouTube.

Lungile believed in telling people's stories, and she believed in the goodness in people. Both attributes that I hope will live on in all of us who were fortunate to have known her. As well as those of you who will meet her for the first time in this story.

Susan Green, Tempe

New Year: Get busy living, or get busy dying

For those of you who follow me on Twitter or who are Facebook friends, you are probably aware I've had a hard time with this transition from 2008 to 2009.

I need to stop listening to those who bash '08.. yes, the market was lousy, job security took a hit. But we elected the first Black man as U.S. President, a man who presents us with hope, challenges and opportunities. And all is well in my world, really.

Some of the heaviness I have to slough off comes from working in an Old Media world and being excited and driven by New Media sentiments. I come from a long line of employees and I find myself wanting to be more and more entrepreneurial. As life changes, I need to keep that excitement alive.

My friend Lisa reminded me today of this beautiful movie ending... these final lines from The Shawshank Redemption.

"I find I'm so excited, I can barely sit still or hold a thought in my head. I think it's the excitement only a free man can feel, a free man at the start of a long journey whose conclusion is uncertain. I hope I can make it across the border. I hope to see my friend, and shake his hand. I hope the Pacific is as blue as it has been in my dreams. I hope. "

'Get busy living, or get busy dying. That's goddamn right.'

Yes. That's goddamn right.

Robin, Tempe, Arizona

Do just one good thing for someone this holiday

One good thing is all you need.

That's the message in this blog I stumbled on today. Thank you, Mata H. Simple stories. Huge message.

Read Mata H.'s story about a Perfect Moment that stopped her from feeling sorry for herself and helped her realize that if she had the ability to help, she had an abundance.

As she says:

Imagine -- let's say 1,000 people read this post eventually. And let's imagine that everyone does one thing because of it. That means that we can all be part of A Thousand Good Things.

I will share this with you. She told a story about her sister-in-law, Nancy.

At her work site, Salvation Army puts up an "Angel Tree". Each angel is a paper card with the details of someone's needs on it. You pick a card, and "adopt" a stranger for the holiday. My sister-in-law chose a single father of four children. When asked what he needed, he said "Socks".
I asked why she had chosen him. She said "Well, I figure that for Salvation Army to be dealing with him as a single father, he has to be really poor, beaten down by life so low that he could only ask for socks. I'll bet he is all focussed on what his kids need." I asked what she got him.
"I didn't know anything but his sock size, so I got him 30 pairs of socks -- wool socks, dress socks, athletic socks, argyle socks, fuzzy socks, warm socks, cotton socks. I couldn't really know what else he needed, because I didn't know what size he is -- so I did this to help him Dream Big. The man needs to Dream Big.I wanted to make his socks splendid."

Want more from Mata H.? Check her out.

Robin, Tempe, Arizona

A perfect random act of kindness

My aunt has been asking me for months to submit something to the perfect moment project. For months I struggled to think of something worth sharing and after reading some stories I was able to see that I perfect moment can be the smallest thing, so here's my story.:

My freshman year in college was extremely stressful. One day in particular I was stressed over school, money, my boyfriend, the works. Since I lived with eight girls at the time, I went outside to get some privacy and I found my self sitting on a curb crying for about an hour.

I heard countless footsteps and voices approach and stop talking as they passed by me. No one seemed to pay me any mind. As I sat outside crying I heard yet another set of footsteps and I tried to control myself as she passed by but she didn't.

A girl whom I'd never seen before sat next to me and asked me if I wanted to talk about it.

I looked at her, shocked because in the hour that I sat there she was the only one to notice me...


I told her "no" but she introduced herself anyway and told me what room she lived in.

She told me that if I changed my mind I was welcome to go to her room and talk to her.

In that moment my entire day turned around. The random act of a stranger was my perfect moment. :)


Brittani, Riverside, Calif.

The day Donna Brazile broke character

Donna Brazile Is Not Going To The Back Of The Bus

Wasn't this a Perfect Moment for us all this week?
I must have played this 5 times in a row.

She put it so well.
'Don't let no one take us back.. we're going forward.'

She drove home the point..

about looking for a candidate with strength of character. And what made it so perfect was that she broke character. She let us in. And so many of us couldn't help but let her in.

As we reach the home stretch of a frustrating, exciting, divisive, hilarious, and sometimes inspirational Presidential race, Donna Brazile offered us a few moments of clarity.

Robin, Tempe

Music ... making your own life soundtrack

When I was younger I knew that.

But these days I have to remind myself that music can help create a perfect moment. Help change a mood, coax a smile, set the tone for the day as well as any affirmation taped to the mirror.

One of my favorite affirmations is: "I will enjoy the people I work with today." That works wonders.

And then a dose of Little Jackie on the way in ... and I'm good to go.





And then later in the day...

... far from work, Alejandro Sanz.



Enjoy your soundtrack.

Robin, Tempe

daughtry rocks with a great message of hope

I wanted to start this week with a message of hope. When we started this blog, we wanted it to be about positive things. Sometimes we can be a bit overwhelmed by just the every day things in life.

The Perfect Moment Project is about stopping for a moment and seeing that things are not so bad. Once you start looking for the positive side of things, it's amazing how much goodness we have in this world!



Today I wanted to share a song with you. I heard it for the first time this weekend, and it really had an impact. It's by a group called Daughtry. Many of you might remember this group from American Idol. This song is a great reminder that we all have a choice to make. We can accept things as they are, or we can stand up, and try to change it. I love this message, I love this song, and I hope it gets your week off to a great start!

Check out Daughtry's 'What About Now?' on VH1. The words are great, but the pictures really add to his meaning.

What about Now?

Shadows fill an empty heart
As love is fading,
From all the things that we are
But are not saying.
Can we see beyond the scars
And make it to the dawn?

Change the colors of the sky.
And open up to
The ways you made me feel alive,
The ways I loved you.
For all the things that never died,
To make it through the night,
Love will find you.

What about now?
What about today?
What if you're making me all that I was meant to be?
What if our love never went away?
What if it's lost behind words we could never find?
Baby, before it's too late,
What about now?

The sun is breaking in your eyes
To start a new day.
This broken heart can still survive
With a touch of your grace.
Shadows fade into the light.
I am by your side,
Where love will find you.

What about now?
What about today?
What if you're making me all that I was meant to be?
What if our love, it never went away?
What if it's lost behind words we could never find?
Baby, before it's too late,
What about now?

Now that we're here,
Now that we've come this far,
Just hold on.
There is nothing to fear,
For I am right beside you.
For all my life,
I am yours.

What about now?
What about today?
What if you're making me all that I was meant to be?
What if our love never went away?
What if it's lost behind words we could never find?

What about now?
What about today?
What if you're making me all that I was meant to be?
What if our love never went away?
What if it's lost behind words we could never find?
Baby, before it's too late,
Baby, before it's too late,
Baby, before it's too late,

Songwriters: Josh Hartzler, David Hodges, Ben Moody.


Susan, Tempe