I am expecting a fun filled season in watching The Miami Dolphins on Direct TV this year. I have always been a Dolphin fan. I fell in love with their uniforms when I was a little boy. I even love the uniforms that the current team now wears. They made a few slight changes, but the original colors and concept of having a dolphin on the helmet remains the same.

Head Coach Tony Sparano is very optimistic about this season. Coach Sparano is a solid coach that has implemented some creative offensive schemes that have provided the team great success last year. Those same schemes will be complemented with some newer ones. This should help the offense put up more points on the scoreboard. We cannot forget that Bill Parcells is in the front office. Mr. Parcells is a proven commodity that has given this organization a needed boost in roster changes and play calling.

Everyone in the city is excited with the acquisition of Brandon Marshall. Brandon is an all-pro wide receiver that is full of rich talent. His ability will help stretch the offense. This will lead to more deep plays that were missing last year. One can easily expect him to score one or more touchdowns this year!

All of the fans are planning on enjoying themselves this year in the comfort of Sun Life Stadium!

It’s summer time again and, like most Americans, that means baseball! As a Philadelphia resident, I try to catch all the Phillies games on Satellite tv every chance I get. I cannot imagine anything more patriotic than filling out a baseball stat tracking form from the cool comfort of my couch while enjoying an ice cold Yuengling. It is not just for nostalgia, or even to feel connected to the rest of America, that I enjoy watching the games. Baseball is a wonderful sport for those who really take the time to understand its complexities and depth.

The chess like battle of strategy between the batter, pitcher and catcher that occurs with every single pitch is a thing of beauty for those who see what is actually happening. Many of my friends complain that baseball is too slow for them, but they miss the point. There is constant action happening with every pitch, every hit, and every out. If you only see the runs scored, then you are missing the entire point of the sport of baseball. That would be like watching boxing only for the knock outs and ignoring the true beauty of the sweet science.

When I get home from work every day, and flip on the big screen its MLB all the way for this fat old man from Philly.

With summer, comes all the specials for tv options.  I have seen so much advertisement for Dish specials and cable specials that it almost seems as if they are giving the stuff away.

Dish specials are great, because they often include free installation and give you a choice of so many channels ranging from sports, to movies and even to international and foreign channels that.  Cable specials are also laden with money saving incentives and perks like High Definition content channels and DVR capabilities.  The choices and plans vary as do their costs.  However, the specials really undercut the standard pricing and offer super deals for a limited time.  The best thing to do s to lock in the plan rate for a year or two so that you are not hit with any price increases in the future.

With all these tv options available, I want to make sure I have the time set aside to enjoy the programming.  I am thinking about a staycation where I spend my time in my man cave and watch sports all day.  I think that would be a great way to reharge my batteries and taking in all the great sports action that is available.  Imagine, 24/7 worth of football, boxing, MMA and baseball. ow what else can be better?

I think the best way to make a selection is to first decide what is important to you in terms of the available programming from the differing home television providers then comparing the costs of the different providers. For example, if sports is your thing, then make sure you get the home television provider that offers the most sports channels and programming.

Another thing to consider is the weather.  I have heard that having a dish isnt the best thing if you live in an area whith severe weather.  Rain and high winds effect the positioning of the TV dish and may cause interuptions in your viewing.  In addition to all of this, I think the biggest factor in deciding the home television service, is how much you get for your money.  The value is the most important factor.  If you have kids, you obviously want to have a lot of channels so that you get a variety of television shows.  However, if you are not home alot, then you may want to stick with the basics.  There is no sense in having and paying for a lot of channels when your vieing habits are minimal.

As I said, there are a lot of choices, but you need to be careful of what it really is that you need to have.  After all, you can only watch one channel at a time.

Retirement means getting to pick up that hobby or sport you’ve always yearned to play. Whether it means getting more use out of those golf clubs in the closet or starting a weekly match of pool volleyball at the local YMCA with other retirees, it’s fun and easy to get involved in such activities again. And that’s exactly what I did.

You don’t have to exactly go out racing cars – which I didn’t – I chose to practice my golf swing again but first checked with my doctor to make sure I was taking the proper safety precautions. I was a little embarrassed at first, but came to realize that I did need to take long breaks between games and ride the golf cart through the course. I also discovered that I was having trouble communicating with other golfers on the course and thought it might be time to consider Hearing Aids. A friend recommended Miracle Ear and I decided it was worth checking out.

It turns out that I did have hearing loss and needed a little extra help, but the funny thing is that it took picking up an activity I’ve loved for so long to make me realize that.

I’m one of the thousands of people that didn’t make it to the major leagues. I played baseball in high school, in college, and didn’t even get noticed. While I have a degree, a job, and a family, I still long to play the game. Thanks to the Parks & Recreation department, I’ve been able to join the fast pitch baseball league in my community. The major different between the majors and the leagues I play for is that instead of getting paid, I pay them to play. It doesn’t matter, I love it, and I keep my skills up, despite getting older.

When the summer months come through, I make it a point to not only take notes while watching the Yankees on one of my directv Washington sports channels, but also make sure to move forward in the open field. I have been playing right field my whole career, and while the coaches like me playing center and at various times 3rd base, I still enjoy the right field area.

Fast pitch baseball isn’t too common, as many people play softball instead. I love playing the game, and fast pitch reminds me of my youth so much, that I don’t know if I can ever give it up. I spend a lot of time thinking about the game, and with summer rec leagues, I’m allowed to live the dream, even if I can’t be a professional.

Its crazy how the sport of MMA has inspired so much fashion into the mainstream and its popularity just seems to be growing with no bounds.  MMA clothing is the new rage and I think it is here to stay and will be a staple in any ones wardrobe, regardless of their age and or sex, just like a pair of blue jeans.  Every one I know has at least one pair of blue jeans, and now they also own at least one MMA inspired article of clothing.  There is a subculture of MMA fashion present at all major televised MMA events.  The big name fighter’s cage entrance is always something that is highly anticipated by the fans to see what their favorite fighter is wearing and which products he (or she) is endorsing.  And, more often than not, its always a new shirt.  The fights are like the preview of what shirts will be available the next day.  Fans,will see the fighter’s wearing their new “Walk Out” shirts and end up buying one.

MMA apparel can now be found in the mainstream department stores, however the online stores of the manufacturers are still the better place to buy these types of apparel as they often have the newer selections and a much bigger choice of items to choose from.  In the 80′s the rock band’s made a killing selling concert t-shirts…remember…the concert baseball t-shirts? They came and left because peopel’s taste in music changed.  I do not see the same happening with MMA.  It is here to stay and has brought with it a new fashion attitude. Tastes in music changes, sports however,once established, will flourish and just keep on growing.

The funny thing is that when my brother lived inLos Angeles, he had Directv but never  signed up for it after he moved.  Now that he has a family also, his wife and 6 year old son could also enjoy all that this gift will offer.  And the best part about it, is that this is one of those gifts that will keep on giving…..and never stop.  The programing  that is available is a wide range of channels that will always have something anyone is interested in watching.

MMA Worldwide had a chance to sit down with Manny “The Anvil” Gamburyan as he invited us to the Hayastan MMA academy in North Hollywood, CA on the heels of his upcoming bout with Leonard Garcia at WEC 44 November 18^th in Las Vegas, Nevada. Manny speaks on what he is working on in preparation for his match with Leonard Garcia, the recovery of his hand and much more!

MMA Worldwide: Before we start I just want to say, man that was insane! You just finished your training session and you went for like an hour and ten minutes non stop and your not even tired man

Manny Gamburyan: Yea, I’m in pretty good shape right now

MMAWW: So how’s the hand?

MG: The hand is doing great you know, I rehabbed it and went to the doctor. He told me to still get it checked to see if it wasn’t fractured or anything like that. I got cleared so I called the WEC and told them I was cleared and ready to go.

MMAWW: Now everyone knows you are going to be fighting Leonard Garcia, which I think is going to be an awesome fight. You just go and go and go and come straight forward. He’s known as a brawler with good stand up; so how is your training camp coming together?

MG:  My training camp is going great, I got a lot of good training partners that are sparring exactly the way Leonard is. He’s a brawler, he’s a good fighter and I’m not going to take anything away from him. It’s a good challenge for me and I’m going to do the best I can.

MMAWW: So who have you been bringing in for your training camps and who have you been working with?

MG: I’ve been working with a lot of people dude. A lot of people, though I’m not going to mention any names but I have really good guys. Training partners, sparring partners, jiu-jitsu partners, wrestling partners, all mimicking the way he fights. The way he throws wild punches, straight punches. He comes from a really good camp and I respect his camp and I respect his coach Greg Jackson. I’m going to be a hundred and ten percent and you have to be like that when you go up against Greg Jackson’s camp.

MMAWW: So I know a majority of your wins come from submission, are you going to look to try and take the fight to the ground?

MG: To be honest with you, for this fight I don’t really care. I’m ready to brawl with him, let my hands go and see what happens. If he waits, I’m going to attack, if he attacks I’m going to knock him out. Obviously his game plan is to not go to the ground with me because I think I have an advantage over him as well as in wrestling. Stand up wise, if I connect, I connect, and he goes to sleep.

MMAWW: So what holes in Garcia’s game are you looking to attack?

MG: You know I’m going to go out there, engage in the middle and just go from there. Whatever happens, happens. If I have to throw my hands, I’ll throw my hands, and kicks and I’ll take him down. I have the advantage in the majority of categories. If you look at it on paper I just about have the advantage everywhere. So I’m looking forward to having a good fight

MMAWW: I have a feeling it’s going to be fight of the night

MG: I hope so too.

MMAWW: So how many days out of the week are you training now?

MG: About six days a week and three to four hours a day

MMAWW: Now If you get past Leonard Garcia, are you looking for a title shot?

MG: Whatever the WEC wants me to do, if they want me to take on the winner of Jose Aldo/Mike Brown, I’m ready to take the challenge bro. I’m not trying to look past Leonard though. I’m prepared for Leonard and then after that, whoever comes up.

MMAWW: Between those two, who would you rather fight, Aldo or Brown?

MG: They are both good, Jose Aldo is a good striker, good jiu-jitsu and Brown is the champion and you can’t take anything away from him. He beat Urijah Faber two times in a row and he’s a great champion. I have a lot of respect for him.

MMAWW: So you made the drop to 145 and the switch to the WEC. How is that?

MG: To tell you the truth, I wasn’t having a hard time in the UFC just the one hundred and fifty five pounders are just way to big for me. They walk around 185-190 and I walk around 160-161 so I have no advantage. The day of a fight the most I weigh is 160-161, like in my last fight in the UFC with Thiago Tavares. I weighed 160, he probably outweighed me by 25 pounds. I realized it’s not my weight class… I can fight the lightweights and challenge anyone they throw at me but 145 is just a better weight class for me. I get to have a height advantage, weight advantage and strength advantage

MMAWW: I would say speed advantage also.

MG: Yea and speed advantage also

MMAWW: So I’m seeing a lot of Armenian fighters springing up everywhere in boxing and MMA, and a lot are becoming really great fighters. What’s your take on this?

MG:  Oh, obviously we have a lot of talent not only here, but back in Armenia too. A lot of really good wrestlers, to lifting, everything. It’s coming along right now, fighters like Vic Darchinyan, Arthur Abraham…

MMAWW: Yea, Abraham just knocked out Jermain Taylor in the boxing super six tournament.

MG:  Yea exactly, we are coming along and we still have a couple more guys out there, like Karen Darabedyan who fights the same night as me and I don’t know if you heard but “Razor” Rob McCullough’s opponent got injured and Karen got offered that fight

MMAWW: Yea, Karen Darabedyan signed a four fight deal with the WEC.

MG: Yup, he’s a dangerous opponent and he has been my training partner for a long time now and he’s a bad motherfucker. It’s going to be a real hard time for Rob, and if he’s looking to just walk past him it’s going to be a long night for him.

MMAWW: Well thank you very much Manny, it was a pleasure.