Tim Ellsworth

Jack single-handedly manages to secure the nukes and save the world. So what else is new?

I’m a little surprised by the development with Audrey, as I figured that would be a plotline for another season. Is this the first time there have been two seemingly unrelated plotlines going on in the same season?  Pretty convenient how the Chinese managed to call Jack immediately after he saved the world.

Actually, in this photo, Emmalee is sitting at our front door watching Daniel play baseball with me. It’s another great photo by my wife, and one of my favorites.

Good story in Baptist Press today about Masters winner Zach Johnson.

“Being Easter, my goal was the glorify God and hopefully I did that today,” Johnson said yesterday after winning the tournament.

Evidently a church in Ethiopia is claiming as much. And thousands of AIDS patients are refusing medical treatment, opting instead to be doused by holy water in hopes of being cured.

Hat tip: JRazz

The injury to Chris Carpenter’s elbow may be more serious than first expected. He’s having an MRI today to see what the problem is.

Have a blessed Easter weekend.

Westminster Bookstore recently ran an interview with Stephen Nichols, author of the new book “The Reformation: How a Monk and a Mallet Changed the World,” which I reviewed a few days ago.

I know it’s a long season, but dang it stinks to get swept in the first series of the year. Could somebody for the Cardinals please get a hit?

Also, why is Preston Wilson on this team? Anybody?

For those who haven’t heard, my dad, Roger Ellsworth, pastor of Immanuel Baptist Church in Benton, Ill., was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer. It was detected early, and the cancer is isolated to the prostate, so that is a blessing from God. The prognosis is good.

Dad will have surgery on Tuesday, April 10, in Chicago to remove the prostate.  I’d appreciate your prayers on his behalf. For those who would like updates about his condition, I’ll be posting them here in the days ahead.

Looks like Major League Baseball and cable TV have reached an agreement allowing cable to carry the Extra Innings package. Good news, good news.

Hat tip: Owen

Neat story in today’s New York Times about Arnold Blume, an 81-year-old substitute teacher in Great Neck, N.Y.

In a school where the average age of the teachers is under 40, and the students’ grandparents include many of the baby-boomer cohort, Mr. Blume has emerged as a sort of older person in residence, an on-call doctor of memory.

He is the only person in the building, for instance, who remembers the shantytown Hooverville that once blanketed Riverside Park at 72nd Street. He talked about it the other day in Miss Mostrande’s eighth-grade social studies class.

He is the only one who had ever heard of, much less laid eyes on, a sign that said “No Jews, No Negroes, No Dogs Allowed.” He explained how that felt on another day in Ms. Andersen’s eighth-grade English class.

Josh Hamilton got a warm welcome in his first Major League at-bat yesterday.

In that moment, he hadn’t done anything yet as a major leaguer. His at-bat in the eighth inning of the Cincinnati Reds’ 5-1 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Monday was the first of his career.

It’s what he had already accomplished in his personal life — getting his cocaine addiction under control, getting his life back on track — that made the crowd of 42,720 stand and cheer.

“I’ve never witnessed anything like that,” Hamilton said. “I’ve never been part of anything like that. The way I’m feeling is hard to describe.”

Congratulations to Peter Rieke, who won our NCAA Tournament Challenge contest on ESPN. Peter’s 1,290 points edged Mark Goldman at 1,260 and Di Winson at 1,250.

It came down to the last game between Peter and me. Peter had Florida, and I had Ohio State.

Thanks to all who participated.

I’m still not convinced Milo isn’t dirty. Maybe I’m wrong, but I’m wondering if his little gaffe involving the security parameters wasn’t done intentionally. We’ll see.

Tom Lennox is quite the conniver. I think the show’s writers have done a good job with his character.

I’d prefer two hours of listening to my dog trying to yack up a hairball than to sit through a game listening to Billy Packer. The extent of his analysis — for which he’s paid gobs of money — is, “They’re really tired.”

In watching the Ohio State-Florida game tonight, that’s all I heard from Packer. “Oden’s really tired.” “Conley’s tired.” “Ohio State is really tired right now.” Blah, blah, blah.

To Packer, nobody ever simply gets beaten. Florida didn’t win because they were better than Ohio State. They won because they weren’t as tired as Ohio State.

Let me get this straight. These guys are 18-22 years old, in peak physical condition, and have played 40 minutes of basketball about 40 different times this year. They’re playing in the biggest game of their lives. And yet, they’re tired. What brilliant insight.

I’ll tell you who’s tired, Billy.

Me. Of you.