The BK '24 Post Election Edition

Event:    BK Breakfast
Date:      Sat, Nov 30, 2024
Time:     0730 Hours (#securetheporch)
Place:    Bagel Market & Deli (our usual place, Corner Cafe & Grill, was closed)
BK Attendance: Ed B, Rick B, Mike H, Mike B. 

Absent: Al D, Perry B, Steve B, Tom R, Jim W. Mark C.

The last time the BK blog was published was 2021. COVID was in full swing, the Donald lost the election, the Biden/Harris  administration were getting their feet wet,  and Rutgers basketball/football were struggling.  Wow! How things have changed. Fast forward to today and COVID is done, the Donald won the election, Rutgers football is bowl bound and Rutgers basketball has given us fans a great deal of optimism.

Some thoughts on the election...I am so sick and tired of hearing the media and candidates tell us commoners "this is the most important election of our lifetime and somebody(take your pick) is an existential threat to America. The way I see it is the only existential threat to America is the utterly pathetic media...and the problem with a pathetic media is democracy depends on free and fair reporting of the facts. A free and unbiased media is an integral part of the great American experiment. There are members of the media and politicians who are publicly stating that the first amendment is getting in the way of governing effectively. There is no bigger threat to America than those people who want to decide what opinions are worthy of public consumption. The reason why freedom of press, religion, assembly, and petition are in the First Amendment is because they are the most important rights we Americans have in relation to our government.

Both candidates have massive flaws. It just came down to how much weight you put on the individual flaws. Each side can point to some statement made by the other candidate and claim that candidate is unfit for the office. I will say, one side presented to the public the most pathetic ticket of my lifetime. I challenge anyone to refute that statement.  One final note on the election...if you ended a friendship over politics, you need to get psychiatric help.

I do believe there is a shift away from many of the social issues that the Democratic Party have been pushing the last couple of years. The American people have spoken loudly. Yet, I have yet to hear a repudiation by the Democrats of some of these extreme positions. I hope they don't see the problem as the messenger and not the message. America needs two strong parties!

Where has the BK Blog been? I have been asked this question countless times and quite frankly, I don't have a good answer. My current excuse is COVID. We have all seen this before...one Vax, another vax, a booster here, a booster there and all of a sudden, I'm a little loopy in the head. But, that excuse doesn't cut it anymore. With retirement looming(Dec, 31 2024 - Yahoo!!!), I hope to publish more blogs...maybe once a month. Sometimes I ask myself "who would want to read the BK blog?" But, I must admit, some of the stories told during the BK's Saturday morning breakfast are hilarious; often exaggerated, rarely accurate, but very entertaining. 

What's going on in the BK? The BK already has a number of exciting and noble initiatives underway. We have a very active gambling initiative. The amount of money that changes hands on a typical Saturday breakfast is staggering at times. There is the lottery committee that is struggling at the moment but we have constantly been assured, "don't worry, we are playing the long game". As Mike H. says, "that was fine when we were ten years younger but we are all getting a little long in the tooth". We actually have two different lottery strategies going on at the same time with each spearheaded by a different BK member. Nobody is sure if they are independent of each other or if one reports up to the other. It's a bit of a sensitive issue. Many of the BK members have retired or are near retirement with just a few still working. Who would have thought?

What's new in the BK Club? With most of the BK members either retired or near retirement, I thought it might be a good idea to start a BK Walking Klub. I found myself with an hour of dead time every Saturday morning prior to the BK meeting for breakfast at 7:30 at The Corner Cafe. So, I announced to the BK Klub that I would be meeting across the street in front of the town library at 6:30 AM to walk, get some exercise, breath in some fresh air and maybe engage in some fellowship with my BK brothers. What a great wholesome idea...right? Well, so far, the response has not been overwhelming. On one occasion I had one BK member join me...and that's it! For privacy reasons I don't want to share his name. The walk started out fine. We took a few laps around the municipal complex and engaged in the usual small talk. I started to ask about The BK Fund and how the money was being dispersed and all of a sudden things got a little awkward. Is it possible I mis-read the conversation? Sure it is...I guess. But there has never been another attendee at the BK Walking Club. Very disappointing! 

Feel free to share your thoughts on how to increase membership in the BK Walkers Club.   

What is the BK reading these days?
Submitted by Coach Rooney. 

“I just finished reading The Price by Armen Keteyian & John Talty. Two of the nations leading journalists on college athletics. It describes how NIL players and realignment are causing chaos in college football and the effect it has on recruiting.” 

What does this all mean for Rutgers football? How can they possibly compete with the likes of 'take your pick of any top 25 program'? We are in the midst of the Rutgers experiment into big time college football and so far results have been mixed at best. But we do have a top 25 BK Tailgate.

The BK '24 Christmas Gala is being held Sat, Dec 21 at Luigi's Restaurant and Pizza - 305 Elizabeth Ave, Somerset, NJ 08873. I 'think' the doors open at 6 PM. Several of us had dinner there a few weeks back and spoke with the owner to finalize our plans. The owner's name is Marvin but he didn't think Marvin's Pizza sounded to good so he called it Luigi's. We had to make sure that we will have the room to ourselves just in case we humiliate each other too much with our Man of The Tear awards ceremony, lottery update, various speeches, games, and what not. The Master of Ceremonies will be none other than brother Rick. Nobody does It better than Rick. I just hope I can get a Caesar salad with ranch dressing. Year after year I make this request and I receive nothing but a blank stare. Is this too much to ask for? I don't get it. Please, somebody, help me with this.

The BK Weight Reduction Program, also known as the BKWRP, will be commencing on Saturday, Jan 4. 2025 for ten weeks and final weigh-in will be Sat, March 15, 2025. The rules are:

• Entry Fee: $20 - payable to BKWRP Commissioner (Ed Bauer)
• Entrants must weigh-in on Sat, Jan 4 and Sat, Mar 15 undressed and report weights to BKWRP Commissioner.
• Entrants must use the same scale for every weigh-in.
• Weigh-ins besides the two mandatory weigh-ins are optional but encouraged.  
• If entrant loses 10 lbs, they will get their entry fee back.
• The winner is defined by who loses the most as a percentage of their body weight.
• The winner will receive all entry fees from entrants who failed to lose ten pounds.

Rutgers Football

Record: 7-5, Conf 4-5

Notes: The most B1G conf wins in Rutgers history.
Last Game: Rutgers Michigan State 41 - 14 (W)
Next Game: to be determined - we are bowl bound!!!

BK Rutgers Tailgate

Record: 12-0

Notes: Not many tailgates have a ferris wheel. We do! Jersey Strong! If you have never been to a BK Tailgate, you are missing something. Just don't bring the bagels after 8 AM for a 12 PM game.Trust me, that would be a big mistake. 

Rutgers Basketball

Record: 5-3, Conf 0-0

Last Game: Rutgers v Texas A&M(20) (L)  81 - 77

Notes: Rutgers is an improving team. By the end of December, I predict an appearance in the top 25.

Next Game(s):
Sat, Dec 7, 2024.......Rutgers @ Ohio State University 12 PM
Tue, Dec 10, 2024....Rutgers v Penn State 7 PM
Sat, Dec 14, 2024.....Rutgers v Seton Hall 3 PM
Sat, Dec 21, 2024.....Rutgers v Princeton 12 PM
Mon, Dec 30, 2024...Rutgers v Colombia 5 PM

BK Calendar

Fri, Dec 6, 2024...........First Friday of the month Mass

Sat, Dec 7, 2024..........BK dues is due

Sat, Dec 14, 2024........BK Christmas Gala

Mon, Dec 16, 2024.....Happy Wedding Anniversary Rick & Maria 

Thu, Dec 19, 2024......Happy Birthday Cindy Bauer 

Sat, Dec 21, 2024.......Happy Birthday Tom Rooney 

                            .......The BK Christmas Gala @ Luigi's

Wed, Dec 25, 2024.....Christmas Day.         

                           ........Happy Birthday Mike Hagerty