Tough Day In Happy Valley

Sunday was a rough one for many alumni, students and fans of Penn State University as what once had been a symbol of pride was taken away in shame by a forklift.  The bronze statue of football coach Joe Paterno, second only to the Nittany Lion shrine at the opposite end of campus when it comes to photo backdrops, was removed and placed in storage and may never been seen by the public again. 

However that may pale in comparison with the news that comes this morning when the NCAA announces the action it is taking against the football program and university in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal.  Reports indicate that Penn State will be hit with a multi-year bowl ban, loss of scholarships, recruiting limits, probation and multi-million dollar fine.  While it’s not the so-called “death penalty” some have said that this could actually be worse and leave the program a shell of what it once was.  I’ll have more for sure tomorrow.

The Mets were a fun story for the first three months of the baseball season but it appears they are in the midst of a free fall that will not end anytime soon.  Not only were they swept at home by the Dodgers this weekend and have lost 9 of their last 10 games, but they have dropped under .500 for the first time this season and their pitching staff is in shambles.  I guess it was fun while it lasted.

You have to feel bad for Adam Scott who was on his way to winning his first golfing major when he suffered an epic collapse at the British Open Sunday which allowed the well-liked Ernie Els to collect an unlikely fourth major.  Scott had been in control all weekend long and while he struggled for the most part yesterday still looked like a winner until he bogeyed the final four holes which gave Els a one-shot victory.

A couple of years ago the borough of Seaside Park decided to install parking pay stations in areas by the beach that previously had been free.  It’s no surprise because shore area towns continue to go to the well and charge visitors more while offering little in return.  I’ve been able to avoid paying to park all summer as I usually get to the beach early enough to find a free spot.

Yesterday I had to leave for a while and when I came back could not find a freebie so I reluctantly pulled into a paid spot.  Then I waited 20 minutes because the 4 people ahead of me at the pay station were having trouble because they could get the machine to accept their credit cards.  As they scrambled to find cash I thought about nice things used to be.