Random Thoughts 4/11/12

• Goodbye Rick Santorum; see you in four years.  There go all of those Santorum/Ryan bumper stickers I ordered.
• Goodbye Thomas Robinson; see you in the NBA.  This is the best I've felt about a player leaving school early in a while (I'm usually totally against it).  Good luck, T-Rob.  By the way, have none of the Kentucky players declared yet?  The deadline to declare early is April 29.
• The Spring signing-period for college basketball recruits starts tonight (and runs thru mid-May).  I don't expect KU to land any big names – the team already has all of its spots filled for next year – so if they somebody does declare for KU that means somebody will have to redshirt or lose a scholarship.
• Why are so many people determined to find a racial component in the Trayvon Martin shooting?  Isn't it tragic enough already?
• It was a beautiful morning to mow the yard this morning.  I'm still getting used to push mowing but it's definitely the right choice for that yard.  I've been discouraging the few friends and neighbors that have asked about our riding mower from buying it.  It's a great mower but I hate selling a vehicle (or anything like it) to someone I know.  As soon as the money changes hands, something will break or fall off.  Then I feel bad.  If my neighbor bought the mower, I'd be a nervous wreck every time I hear it running.
• KU has hired Niko Roberts' dad, Norm Roberts, to be an assistant to Bill Self.  Roberts has worked under Self for nine years, previously, at four different schools, before heading out on his own as a head coach at St. Johns and an assistant at Florida.  Niko was a sophomore backup guard this year.
• I'm not a fan of over-sized smart phones.  A few months ago I saw a friend squirm to retrieve one of these monstrosities from his front pocket.  He shot one leg out straight like he had a cramp, then with both hands worked it back and forth to pull this thing from his pocket; it seemed like it was the size of a thin paperback book.  He put it to his face and I immediately thought of what a little kid would look like talking on my iPhone.  Goofy.  These "phablets," part phone, part tablet, prove that bigger is not always better.  I think Apple has zeroed in on the sweet spots, 9 inches for a tablet and <4 inches for a phone.  But rumors persist that the next iPhone will go from 3.5 inches to 4.0 inches.  If it does, I hope they keep the phone small and implement this great solution.