25 Sports Moments for Atlanta sports fans in my lifetime!

This list was difficult to put together and not because it was hard to think of 25 moments (there are actually 27 as I added a few ties) but it was difficult to leave off another 50. Plus I'm not going to lie when I say that I had to take crying breaks a few times. So without further adieu, here are the 25 (+ 2 extra + honorable mention) worst sports moments of any Atlanta/Georgia fan over my 43 years on this earth:

25. Cowboy Comeback - Dallas coming back in the 4th quarter to knock off Falcons in 1980 was the first real time this city felt heartbreak for a sports team. I barely remember this game which is why it falls at number 25. I was about 7 but the doom and gloom it put on this city was famous. Down all game, the Cowboys scored a couple of touchdowns in the end to win 30-27 and advance to the NFC Championship game. Atlanta's awful sports moments were just starting.


And so it begins!

24. Ice Ice Baby is gone - I'm combining this one. It was embarrassing enough losing one hockey team but two? Wow! The Thrashers did not win a single playoff game in a decade so I wasn't entirely sad that they left but the Flames went on to win a title in Calgary shortly after departing.

23. Bye-Walker - While many people don't discuss it, Herschel Walker's decision to "walk" after only 3 years at UGA was horrible. The USFL and the New Jersey Generals talked Walker into leaving. The same team that was bought by some guy named Donald Trump the next year and soon would go down in flames. The next year, Georgia won the Cotton Bowl and finished in the Top 5 but we all know bigger things would have happened had he stayed. By the way, back then, it was rare for players to leave prior to playing 4 years of college ball.

22. September 11, 1983 - The Braves trailed the Dodgers by 2 games and were crushing them 6-3 in the 9th inning in LA. They were about to move a game back. It had been a rough few weeks as the Braves had been ahead by 6.5 games left but had lost one of their best players Bob Horner to a season-ending wrist injury. The Dodgers came back in the ninth to claim the game 7-6 thanks to a below average player who only played well against Atlanta, RJ Reynolds. No, he did not smoke. The Braves lost the game and the division by 3 games. This was before the famed "chop" but the start of many "chokes" for the boys in red, white and blue.

21. The Cardinal Rule - In 2011, the Braves led the Cardinals by 10.5 games for the final playoff spot with just a month to go. The Braves fell completely apart and the Cardinals won the Wildcard and to make matters worse, they won the World Series that year, too. Worst collapse in baseball history. Fredi Gonzalez would earn the title "Mr. Not September or October." Ok, I gave him that one but it fits.

20. Where is he? - Then there's 2013. The Braves trailed the Dodgers 2 games to 1 but were leading 3-2 in the bottom of the 8th in LA and the 2 best pitchers in the game were out. Clayton Kershaw was out because he'd pitched most of the game for LA. Craig Kimbrel was out because Fredi Gonzalez is an idiot. He never brought him in to close and Juan Uribe hit a game winning 2-run homer. RJ Reynolds was probably smiling somewhere. I was not.


This could have been avoided.

19. Doing the Pack a "Favre" - Though it gets less fanfare everywhere except Atlanta, the Falcons quietly traded a QB in 1992 to the GB Packers for 2 first round draft picks. The QB was Brett Favre. He was pretty good I'd say if you consider winning a Super Bowl and being a Hall of Famer pretty good. The draft picks, well I'm sure they sucked. The reason they traded Favre was because the Falcons said they couldn't get him sober down here. Now no fan in Atlanta can stay sober watching this team. Not a fair trade-off.

18. The trade - No one talks about this 1983 trade that gave the Indians back 2 All-Stars in fan favorites Brett Butler and future All-Star Brook Jacoby. The Braves received starter Len Barker. Barker, who had a perfect game while pitching for Cleveland, was a perfect mess in Atlanta. The Braves fell apart and lost the division. Shocker. The Braves wouldn't be heard from again for nearly a decade.

17. The wrong suitor for Sutter - Bruce Sutter was the greatest closer in history and then the Braves signed him in 1985. Not only did Sutter become a bust but here was the deal. Bruce Sutter was to receive payments totaling $44 million over the next 36 years from the Braves . . . Sutter would receive a $750,000 salary for each of the next six years and a minimum of $1.12 million a year for the remaining 30 years of the contract. In addition, he would get the $9.1 million in so-called “principal” at the end. Yikes! Sadly, he may have been our best closer last year.

16. 10 seconds left - In 2016, things were looking good for Georgia. With a chance to take over the SEC East, Freshman phenom Jacob Eason threw a touchdown pass with just 10 seconds left to give UGA a 31-28 lead and what most assumed was a victory...unless of course you're an Atlanta/Georgia fan. We knew we left too much time on the clock. With 4 seconds left and no pass rush and no one who could knock down a pass, UT's Josh Dobbs threw his own Hail Mary touchdown pass with no time left. Neither team of course won the SEC East but Georgia's season would go up in flames after that one. Sadly, I was there with my wife who is from Knoxville. I'll leave it there. We did leave early THANKFULLY.


Glad I left!

15. Sorry Tony - The Falcons were cruising in the 2013 NFC Championship game against the 49ers and looked to be on their way to the Super Bowl where it would be like a storybook ending for the career of Tony Gonzalez. But then the 49ers came back and Harry Douglas forgot how to run without falling and we were reminded that Atlanta doesn't believe in storybook endings. We only believe in nightmares. We lost 28-24. Thanks again, Falcons. Oh, and Tony would play the following year, but the Falcons would not even make the playoffs. Oh well.

14. Sour sugar - I really started to hate the taste of sugar in the eighties and it started with the 1982 Sugar Bowl. People always say Dan Marino couldn't win the big game but he did that day throwing a touchdown with 33 seconds left to help Pittsburgh knock off number 2 Georgia in what some consider the greatest bowl upset of all time. I think Oklahoma-Boise State was bigger but I'm depressed about now so I'll say it was this game.

13. Sourer Sugar - The 1983 Sugar Bowl pitted number 1 Georgia against number 2 Penn State. Georgia had the best player on the field in Herschel Walker but it didn't matter. Penn State won 27-23 and took the national title. Herschel would add salt to the wound by announcing that he was forgoing his senior year shortly after.

12. Packing it in - In 2011, The Falcons had earned the number 1 seed and were facing the hottest team in football, the Green Bay Packers. Home field meant diddly as the Packers whooped our birds 48-21. The author of the article wrote the Packers punter didn't even need to make the trip.

11. Gator-AID - Down 20-13 with 2:30 left in the 4th, Georgia's David Greene (Not to be confused with the fictional character from School Ties who didn't quite have Greene's arm or the "E" at the end of his last name) found Terrance Edwards wide open at the 30. The ball slipped through Edwards fingertips and Georgia's undefeated season was over and of course to the hated Gators. It was their only loss of the season and kept them out of the National Championship game.

10. Not a Jewell of a moment - July 27, 1996 should have been another great day at the Summer Olympics in Atlanta but instead a bomb when off and most importantly killed a person and injured over a hundred more but secondly put a damper on the entire Olympic Games. People blamed security guard Richard Jewel until finally investigators realized they were wrong. Jewel died at the young age of 44 from kidney issues and diabetes. Sadly he did not get the glory that he deserved. Eric Robert Rudolph was the real perpetrator. He was found years later. Some on the Olympic Committee famously said Atlanta was the worst Olympic Games. Our Mayor Bill Campbell was arrested in the early 2000's and served several months in prison for tax evasion. He was accused of many other illegal acts but those charges were later dropped. I would disagree that Atlanta was the worst Olympic site ever but I do agree that What-Iz-It or Izzy for short was the dumbest idea for an Olympic Mascot. To think people actually agreed on that one still befuddles me. I was embarrassed to be a marketing major.

9. 10-10-10 is the new 6-6-6 - Another game I sadly attended was Game 3 of the Division Series between the Braves and Giants. One of the things that really bothered me about Bobby Cox was his loyalty. When it mattered most, he looked less at how the player was playing then but how they played months or even years before. No better example was Brooks Conrad whose defense suffered at the end of the season and he'd already made an error in the first 2 games of the series. It wasn't like Conrad had Chipper Jones' bat. There was no reason to keep him in the lineup. Cox did and Conrad booted 3 balls that night and allowed 2/3 of the Giants runs to score in a 3-2 loss. Most of the damage came very late. Basically BC should not have played BC that night. But that's Bobby! And that's Atlanta sports. And of course they lost the series.

8. Don't Catch It! - Then there's the SEC Championship in 2012. Georgia was driving to win the game against Alabama. Down 32-28, instead of spiking the ball, Murray threw the ball which was tipped and Conley who was not the intended receiver caught it without thinking that the clock would run out. The clock indeed ran out. Alabama won the National Championship against Notre Dame a few weeks later. Georgia lost and it just happened to be in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta or should I call it the House of Horrors?


Of course now we catch one!

7. Oh Canada - In 1992, the Braves were in the World Series again but this time they found other ways to lose that were painful. Ed Sprague, a little known pinch hitter, hit a 2-run homer off of Jeff "Call me Bruce Sutter" Reardon to come from behind and tie the series at 1 game all. During the series, Devon White made a miraculous catch, Dave Winfield had a big hit and Otis Nixon for some reason bunted to make the final out of Game 6 and end the series. Braves lose again and as usual the final out came in Atlanta!

6 (tie). Not on the Mark - In 1996, the Braves were up 2 games to 1 on the Yankees at home when Braves All-Star closer Mark Wohlers came in. The Braves at one point had been up 6-0 in this game but Wohlers threw a "Please hit me hard" pitch to an average player Jim Leyritz and Leyritz tied the game with a 3-run bomb. The Braves would of course lose the game, lose the series and to this date have still not won another one. Leyritz eventually was arrested but it should have been for stealing our dreams.

6 (tie). Nique vs. Bird - May 22, 1988, Boston Garden, Hawks vs. Celtics Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. The Hawks had just blown a chance to clinch at home after winning in the Boston Garden in Game 5 for the first time in years. That day Bird and Nique battled especially in the 4th quarter. Nique ended up with 47 points to Bird's 34 points but of course in the end the Celtics won 118-116.

5 (tie). No Eugene - Though it didn't happen "in the game," it affected the biggest game in Falcons history to that point. Safety Eugene Robinson was arrested for soliciting an undercover cop in Miami. The Falcons would end up getting crushed the next day by the Broncos at the Super Bowl in January of 1999. Oh and the kicker? Earlier that day, Robinson received the Athletes in Action/Bart Starr Award, given annually to a player who best exemplifies outstanding character and leadership in the home, on the field and in the community. After the arrest, Robinson agreed to return the award. DUH!

5 (tie). No more Nique - On February 24, 1994 - the Atlanta Hawks traded superstar and legend Dominique Wilkins for Danny Manning. The Hawks were number one in the East at the time but Manning did nothing to improve the team. Nique was the last superstar this franchise has had. He is an icon in this city. At least when the Braves traded Dale Murphy he was far past his prime. Nique was not.

4. FIXED - If there was ever a game that was fixed in any sport that Tim Donaghy did not referee, it was the Game 5 NLCS game between the Braves and Marlins in 1997. Gregg's strike zone that day for Livan Hernandez was so big that 5 Bartolo Colon's could have fit in it. The Braves lost the game 1-0. Gregg lost my respect that day as well. If it were the Yankees instead of the Braves, there's no doubt this would have been further investigated. The Marlins would go on to win the World Series. Check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mR3eK5gCChM


McGriff the Crime Dog can spot a criminal!

3. The Infield Fly - You want to hear how karma even hates Atlanta. Here you go. Ted Turner fired Joe Torre as manager of the Braves in the early 80's. So in a single-elimination wild card game back in October of 2012, the umpires made one of the worst calls when Andrelton Simmons hit a pop up that the infielder didn't even get to. The bases should have been loaded with one out with the Braves trailing 6-3. The umpire called it an infield fly meaning Simmons was out and the runners would remain at first and second with two outs. Water bottles were thrown all over the field (I was there but restrained myself). The Braves lost and Joe Torre who now worked for MLB confirmed that the umpires got it right and did not allow a protest. Where did this happen "TED TURNER" Field? Karma is a mean lady! Congrats Mr. Torre!

2. Rise Up; Ummm, no - Up 28-3 in the 3rd quarter, most teams would start celebrating. Not Atlanta fans. The coaches made so many bonehead decisions to lose this game. I felt like I could hear Jason Bateman screaming "That's a bold move, Cotton. Let's see if it pays off." It didn't. We lost 34-28 in OT because our coaches forgot how to run the ball. Another year. Another Falcon disaster.


Run the Damn Ball!

1. Run Lonnie Run! - The only thing that trumps that Falcon loss is Lonnie Smith's baserunning blunder, bringing the worst member of our starting rotation (Charlie Liebrandt) into Game 7 when it mattered and losing in extra innings to the Twins. That was Game 7 of the World Series after a Worst to First season that was the most exciting in Atlanta history. Don't worry Braves. I'm sure someone will trump this next year. The Falcons came damn close!


Pinch-runner maybe?

Honorable mention: I decided to give Georgia Tech a good one. How about having to share a national title because Colorado got credit for 5th Down against Missouri?

The Falcons selecting Jami Germain of Miami instead of a homegrown product who played about 70 miles away in Athens. Hines Ward was the next receiver taken by the Steelers and went on to win a Super Bowl and get into the Hall of Fame. Germain went to prison. I guess the Steelers won that deal.

Dale Murphy and RHP Tommy Greene were traded to the Philadelphia Phillies for Jeff Parrett and Victor Rosario. The only bright spot was Murphy was past his prime but he is still the favorite of many Atlantans today including me. Some forget though that Tommy Greene throw a no-hitter and had some very good years in Philadelphia. Parrett and Rosario were busts. I know you're shocked.

Anyone that former Hawks GM Billy Knight drafted (Marvin Williams, Josh Childress, Shelden Williams) should be considered a terrible sports moment in Atlanta and also who he didn't draft (Chris Paul).

The Atlanta Dream were swept both times in the WNBA Finals.

Just remember that the Atlanta United begins playing in the MLS next year. They have a lot to live DOWN to.

Wow, this was painful! See you next year!

Andy

My normal

I often wonder what it would be like to be "normal." Here are 25 reasons my normal is probably not your normal.



How important is being normal?

25. My normal requires allocating 2 to 3 hours of my day to CF my treatments beginning as early as 4:30 in the morning and finishing as late as 1 a.m.

24. My normal requires carrying a pill bottle with 30 to 40 enzymes to swallow.

23. My normal means receiving funny looks from wearing a mask on airplanes and at my children's doctor's appointments.

22. My normal means fearing germs like they were bullets fired from a gun. Hand sanitizer is my best friend.

21. My normal requires dealing with anxiety when packing multiple bags for as little as a 3-day trip. Traveling is a real workout for someone with cystic fibrosis.

20. My normal means being preoccupied with a doctor's appointment every 90 days for the rest of my life. I also went to a children's clinic until I was 30 years old.

19. My normal means living with suffocating lungs that burn like a four alarm fire.

18. My normal means worrying about power outages because they put a hold on doing my treatments. I now have a battery-powered vest and a generator for safety as well.

17. My normal means learning how to deal with IV and oral antibiotics when I'm sick.



When you look up "normal" in the dictionary, a person with CF is probably never shown.

16. My normal meant explaining to every woman I dated that having children would be a chore, hiding my therapy vest until I had the courage to explain the significance of it and masking pill-taking until I was comfortable enough to reveal my condition.

15. My normal means working every day in the gym and on the treadmill with no guarantees that it will prevent a life-altering infection.

14. My normal is having people refuse to tell me their problems because "they feel guilty complaining to me" because my problems are "much worse." By the way, it's not a competition. Worse or not, I still want to help. Worse is subjective anyway.

13. My normal is picking up the phone and telling someone I'm doing my therapy and hear the "worry" in their voices because they think they just made me sicker by momentarily interrupting my treatments. I actually take breaks to let my dogs out to pee so it's okay.

12. My normal means a coughing fit isn't simply a cold but a frantic call to my pulmonologist and months of taking antibiotics.

11. My normal is having a medicine cabinet that resembles the pharmacy in the back of CVS. I still think they should call me first when they have a backorder situation.



Andy, it's CVS. They need to call in an order.

10. My normal means seeing a therapist and a psychologist because of all the pain and angst cystic fibrosis has caused me. Though I have learned that there's no one or nothing to blame other than me. I'm responsible for my issues because I am the only one who controls how I handle them.

9. My normal means cracking a joke as a self-defense mechanism, using sports as an escape and treating dire statistics as motivation to fight my disease.

8. My normal is reading about studies to see if one would fit me and hoping it could finally be the breakthrough people like me have needed.

7. My normal is knowing I have a disease that has no cure and realizing that my older sister lost her life to it.

6. My normal is NOT walking into a smoky bar and having friends who totally understand and back me.

5. My normal is hearing from people who are sick that they don't want to come anywhere close to me as the "last thing they want to do is get me sick." Trust me. I appreciate it but sometimes it makes me feel like there's something so wrong with me. I mean there is but I guess I don't need the reminder.

4. My normal is telling the person working at the gate I'm flying out of that I need to board with special assistance so I can load the 50 pounds of medication I have with me into the overhead bin. I can't check that stuff. Sometimes it's hard because I go in right after people in wheelchairs. I see people look at me funny as if I'm parking in a handicap space. Little do they know that my handicap is mostly invisible until I put on my mask on the plane.

3. My normal is explaining to the person or persons next to me on a flight that I'm not contagious and just wear the mask for my protection. And because I'm a body double for Bane in the next Batman trilogy.

2. My normal is not being able to hang out with people who have the same disease with me because there's a potential for bacterial cross-contamination. I also can't hang out with people who smoke.

1. And finally, my normal is wearing a vest that has nothing to do with a tuxedo.

I used to feel like cystic fibrosis was making me look abnormal, alienated or just plain ugly. Like I said, I always wondered what it would be like to be normal. Now I see it differently. By being unique, I have an opportunity to make a difference and that's why every day I spread awareness about this disease. If just one person can learn a little bit more about cystic fibrosis and can help the cause, then being different is worth it. After all, if everyone had the same way of doing things, the same interests and the same beliefs, life would be quite boring.



I guess what I'm trying to say is "Embrace your abnormalities. Rather than hiding them, use them for good."

Now if only that were "normal."

Live your dreams and love your life.

Andy

My "Full-Time" Job

People often ask me what I do with myself these days since I'm "retired." Sometimes it makes me feel old and useless when the question is phrased in that manner. When I think of a retired person, I often think of someone who gets up at 10am, drinks his or her morning coffee, reads the paper, takes a nap in the middle of the day, plays some bingo and shuffleboard and goes to bed before the evening news. Perhaps I'm stereotyping a bit.


You won't find me here unless first prize is a bag of gummy bears.

The truth is I probably do more than you think. The truth is that each of you will probably be "retired" before me because I'll never stop working. My job is 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. My occupation doesn't offer me vacation days but tends to provide me a lot of sick days. The benefits are difficult to find but they're there. My "job" has helped me to appreciate life more than most, to fight to stay alive and to make me a better me.

My full-time job is cystic fibrosis.


My work uniform

I figured I'd explain what it's like to be a dad, a husband, an author, a foundation head, a board member and a little league coach...who just happens to have a terminal disease.

Morning:

I usually wake up around 5:30am and do an hour of therapy which includes 50 minutes of vest treatments (I wear a vest that vibrates in order to bring up mucous from my lungs), 5 minutes of nasal treatments, 30 minutes of hypertonic saline aerosol (done at the same time as the vest), 15 minutes of Pulmozyme aerosol (also done at the same time as the vest) and two puffs of my Xopenex inhaler. I also spend 2 minutes using the Acapella device which requires breathing hard for 3 sets of 10 and spitting out the mucous after each set. Afterwards, I clean all of my nebulizers and the Acapella device which takes 15 to 20 minutes.

Next, Andrea and I get the kids ready for school and one of us takes them.


Our "normal" mornings

Afternoon:

Next, I work out by running 3 to 4 miles on the treadmill and then lifting weights for 30 to 45 minutes.

About 2 hours later, I do my second therapy treatment which is just like the first except I use my Afflovest (battery powered vest device) as opposed to my Hill Rom vest and I don't use Pulmozyme the second time around.

Then I go through my day for the next 5 or 6 hours while some days picking up my kids at carpool, working on my book and doing "normal stuff."


I don't live to work out. On the contrary, I work out in order to live.

Evening:

Finally, anytime between 6pm and 11pm, I do my third treatment of the day which is just like the first one as I use my Hill Rom vest. I only do Pulmozyme in the morning unless I'm really sick. I'm very lucky to have a wife who does so much for our kids. When I'm doing treatments, she is helping with homework or making them dinner. Occasionally, the kids and I work on their homework in my office while I do my treatments. Sometimes I need them to shout questions they may have because of the loud noise that comes from doing my machine. Still it's "normal" for us. One thing is for certain. I almost never miss an opportunity to put my children to bed. It seems silly but it is one of the highlights of my day. I know how fortunate I am to have them as well as their mother in my life.


Just a night out with me.

And also:

On the weekends, I only do the first and last treatments as I like to use the time I could have done the middle treatment to spend time with my kids.

Four times a week I add in the Neti Pot for my nose in the mornings and twice a week I take Miralax for my digestive system.

When I'm really sick, I add a couple of hours of IV meds to my day as well as oral antibiotics.

Every 4 to 6 months I do 30 minutes of TOBI aerosol twice a day.

I take 30 to 40 pills per day mostly with meals.


The best thing about an IV is getting rid of it.

Mental Health:

I also take an antidepressant and see a therapist and psychiatrist a few times a year to deal with my depression and anxiety which has greatly helped me to keep these health issues in check. Chronic disease is sort of like a shark and depression and anxiety are those remora fish that grab hold to them. It's hard to deal with a chronic disease day by day without some sort of mental fatigue.


I think I can relate to a shark.

My Clark Kent "normal" life:

I'm not saying that I focus on my health all day. I spend my time also on the National Alumni board for the Terry College Business School at the University of Georgia, the Adult Council for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, the Golf Tournament for my kids' school and I'm the National Chairman of Corporate Sponsorships for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. I'm an author working on The Cystic Fibrosis Warrior Project and I head the Wish for Wendy Family Foundation and am currently starting up my own speaking business called Andy Lipman, LLC. I also coach my son's basketball team, my daughter's softball team and my son's baseball team. My most important two jobs though are dad to two awesome children and husband to my amazing wife.


Everyone with CF plays Clark Kent because our disease is often invisible.

In other words, I try to live a normal life though I'm sure most little league coaches don't wear the type of vest that I wear to my "job" everyday. I guess in that way I'm somewhat unique. No, I do not technically have a full-time job anymore. I left my 9 - 5 job at DiversiTech 2 years ago after doing it for 18 years. Sometimes having a chronic disease alone is a full-time job as you can probably tell. I'm sometimes amazed that I did all I did along with a full-time job for nearly two decades.

Cystic fibrosis is not an excuse to be a bad husband, a lazy dad, an unprepared coach or an ungrateful person. If anything, it gives me reasons to excel at all of these tasks. I'm very fortunate to be alive and I know that. When I was born, living past high school was considered a minor miracle. Today, I'm 43. If you'd told me when I was little that I'd have to do 2 to 3 hours of treatments a day to stay alive, I would have taken it. That's why it's hard for me to be bitter about my daily routine.


My prayers have been answered.

So what's retirement like?


I wish!

"All I can say is it's no game of shuffleboard."

Live your dreams and love your life!

Andy

Atlanta - You don't know us.

I'm frustrated. I read all of these articles (Dan Shaughnessy for one) that poke fun at my city as our Falcons prepare to play in Super Bowl LI. This is the city I call home. It's the city where I was born, raised, where I got married and where I've lived most of my life. It's the city where both my children were born. It's the city that has taught me manners but also how to fight. It's the city whose reputation is vastly mistaken around the world. I am proud to say that I'm from Atlanta!



My city

People often ask me why I don't have a southern accent. Well, first off, please remove the image from your head that Atlanta is the Andy Griffith show or Designing Women. That was our city a few decades ago. And please stop the Peachtree jokes. Yes, we have a lot of Peachtrees but we have thousands of other street names. Atlanta is one of the biggest and fastest growing markets in the world. We have some of the greatest corporations: Coca Cola, Chick Fil-A, Home Depot, UPS and Delta Airlines. Speaking of Delta, Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson Airport is one of the biggest (if not the biggest) airports in the world and odds are you've stopped here at least once in your life because it's the hub for Delta. Atlanta is where many of the great TV shows and films are shot. Ever heard of the Walking Dead? It started here. The Hunger Games series? Yup! Cinema has slowly moved from Hollywood to the ATL.

Atlanta has a rich southern charm, too. You'll find a tradition of courtesy. We open doors without being asked. We say "sir" and "ma'am." We are tough too. Atlanta is where a lot of Civil Rights history started. We are proud of those who have fought: Andrew Young, MLK, John Lewis and so many others.

Atlanta has some superstars too. Evander Holyfield, former heavyweight champion of the world, is from Atlanta. Usher, Tyler Perry, Cam Newton, John Mayer and Ryan Seacrest are all native Atlantans.

Atlanta has some of the coolest places to visit: The Varsity, The Georgia Aquarium and the College Football Hall of Fame. We have so much history here: The Fox Theatre, The MLK Historic Site and the Margaret Mitchell House. Other cool things to see in Atlanta: The Carter Library (Yes, our state claims a president), CNN Center (Yep, the world's biggest news network started here), the Coca Cola Museum and Centennial Olympic Park (yes, we hosted the Olympic Games).

Atlanta, over the last decade, has become one of the biggest transient cities. You wonder why we don't fill up our stadiums for our sports teams? That's because most of the people who live here did not grow up here and are not avid fans like the natives. I can tell you this though. The natives are huge sports fans. Over 93,000 people filled up Sanford Stadium to watch the University of Georgia Bulldogs...host a practice!!! The Atlanta Falcons had more fans come to games this year than the team they are playing in the Super Bowl: The New England Patriots by 35,000! Take that, Dan Shaughnessy!

In a year where the Braves were once again terrible, they still had over 2 million people come through the gates. Many people laugh that we lost 2 NHL teams as we most recently lost the Thrashers. Well would you come watch a team that in a decade of playing had ZERO playoff wins? I'm not talking about zero series wins. I mean they didn't win a single game. And heck, this is the south. We aren't exactly a hockey town.

The Hawks are another example. They are usually at the bottom too. That's because they don't have a superstar and the NBA is a superstar league. In over 50 years, the Hawks have never even won an NBA Eastern Conference Championship game. Again, not a series. A game! When Dominique Wilkins was here, the Omni would constantly sell out. Sadly, he's the last superstar this NBA team has seen.

I'm proud of my city. We have so many things but the one thing we're lacking in are championships. In over 50 years of sports seasons between 3 to 4 teams, Atlanta boasts just 1 championship...the 1995 World Series. Sunday means so much to the people of this community, especially the natives who year after year have watched as other teams have triumphed against our teams in our ballpark (Braves Octobers are legendary for that). We have hosted Super Bowls and crowned champions but never our own. Sunday, we have a chance to experience a winner and we are super excited about the possibility.

People call this city "boring" and "uninspired." They couldn't be more wrong. If the Falcons win the Super Bowl on Sunday, you'll see how much a championship means to this town. You'll see how "boring" and "uninspiring" we are.

It's time this town gained some respect. Sunday we intend to get it.



Rise up!

Live your dreams and love your life!

Andy

Rise Up!

Dear Falcons,

Back in the early eighties, my dad took me to games in old Fulton County Stadium.

I watched Andrews, Bartkowski, Riggs and Billy White Shoes Johnson dazzle us in the 80's and in the 1980-1981 season, they nearly reached their first NFC Championship game. That's when Dallas stunned our Falcons with a furious comeback outscoring them 20-3 in the 4th quarter and edging the birds 30-27 at Fulton County Stadium to reach the NFC Championship game.



The first of many heartbreakers

I remember being in attendance in the late 80's when a kick returner dropped his first punt and then manage to scamper all the way down the field for a touchdown against the old Los Angeles Rams. His name was Deion Sanders. You can learn more about him in Canton.

I was in the Dome in 1998 when we beat San Francisco and then watched on TV a week later as we stunned the Vikings to reach our first and only Super Bowl. I thought it would be the first of many. Then the whole thing with Eugene Robinson happened, we got blasted by the Broncos and Pro Bowl Running Back Jamal Anderson tore his ACL the next season after finally reaching a contract agreement. It looked like the franchise was in shambles.



Why Eugene?

Then a few years later, the birds made a huge trade and drafted a kid out of Virginia Tech. Michael Vick looked like he would take us to the promise land just as the '98 team almost did. Then he got arrested, our coach quit on his team and we had to start from scratch yet again.

I'd about given up on this franchise. Then one night I remember sitting up and watching the number 2 ranked Boston College Eagles play the number 8 ranked Virginia Tech (coincidentally Michael Vick's alma mater) Hokies. I didn't know much about BC's QB but I'd heard he was pretty good. He had one of the worst games of his career that night yet still led his team to an incredible comeback win in the last few minutes while throwing up in a rain-soaked game on the road. I knew this kid was special. His name was Matthew Thomas Ryan. Here in Atlanta we call him Matty Ice.



Matty Ice!

Here's the link from that game...http://www.espn.com/college-football/columns/story?id=3079990&columnist=schlabach_mark.

It was then that I really started to follow the kid and when the Falcons drafted him 3rd in the 2008 NFL Draft, I knew the kid was good but I never had any idea that he would turn out this good.

Matt's teams have been to the playoffs several times, In 2011, we earned the number 1 seed and came up against a hot Packers team in round 2 at the dome. They demolished us 48-21 and Matt had a terrible game throwing a pick 6 before halftime. It was then that I began to wonder if Matt Ryan would ever lead us to a championship. I admit that I probably jumped the gun. In 2013, we came within a play of getting to the Super Bowl but instead lost a big lead to the eventual NFC Champions the San Francisco 49ers and lost 28-24. It was like Atlanta-Dallas 1980 again.



Rodgers got us back then but I look forward to the rematch.

As bad as things were going, Matt never let it affect him off the field. He still did a ton in the community and rarely complained when people like me doubted him. Heck, he even wrote me this on my 41st birthday which I've never shared until this blog. Thanks Emily for talking to his future wife and telling her about me back then. Last year, Matt had the worst season of his career and quite honestly I began thinking we might want to draft his replacement. So much for appreciating his birthday card. I'm ashamed to admit that but a guy on the wrong side of 30 who was regressing was not a sign of a potential MVP candidate.



Thanks Matt!

Then I heard Ryan was in LA this offseason. While most players would do that to improve their brand or check out the Hollywood lifestyle, that wasn't the case for Matt.

Ryan, instead, visited Tom House and Adam Dedeaux of the acclaimed 3DQB training facility. House, a former major league pitcher and pitching coach, and Dedeaux, a former pitcher at USC, developed a program aimed to improve the overall throwing performance of quarterbacks by focusing on four key areas: functional strength and conditioning, mechanics and motion analysis, mental and emotional management, and nutrition. They've worked with Tom Brady, Drew Brees and Carson Palmer, to name a few. Matt's top receiver Julio Jones said he noticed a major difference in Matt's performance during the preseason camps.

Jones was correct. Ryan's arm strength and accuracy drastically improved after completing the program and the Falcons finally gave him the center he's needed his entire career...Alex Mack!

The rest is history.

The Falcons are now 1 win from their first NFC Championship in nearly 2 decades and 2 wins from doing something the franchise has never done in 50 plus years...win a Super Bowl.

Falcons, regardless of the outcome on Sunday, your play has inspired a city of transplants and has helped us come together as one. We love this team. We have 2 running backs who weren't drafted in the first round but together have become one of the best running back tandems in the NFL. We have the best receiver in football and unlike most great NFL receivers, he has avoided the diva label. We have a defense full of young future stars who don't do their talking off the field but rather hit people hard on it. We have a coach who has helped an entire team buy into a "brotherhood." We may not be known as America's Team but I'm fine calling us "Atlanta's Team."

Matt, this post is written to you though. I'm sorry I doubted you. I remember that kid throwing up on a rainy night in Blacksburg, Virginia while leading his team to a comeback win despite having one of the worst games of his life. I remember the guy who came to Atlanta and immediately became engaged in the community. I remember the guy whose first NFL pass in September of 2008 was a 62-yard touchdown pass to Michael Jenkins. As a rookie that season, Ryan lead his team to the postseason. Matt Ryan has always been special. I noticed it a long time ago. It escaped me for a little bit. I'll never make that mistake again. Matty Ice, I'll be joining you in the Dome once again on Sunday. I will cheer like never before.



Counting down the hours till Sunday.

Let's be special one more time.

Rise up!

Andy

The (Parenting) Decision

Years ago, basketball player LeBron James had a big decision to make. Would he stay in Cleveland or "take his talents" to Miami? On live television, he chose Miami and it created a stir around the country.



You think this was difficult?

The "decision" that many potential parents dealing with chronic illness have to make regarding starting a family, while almost never televised, is considerably more difficult and much more life-altering than "taking our talents to South Beach." I speak from experience. Thanks to cystic fibrosis, having kids is not as simple as a fun evening with your significant other. For Andrea and I, it required preparation, disappointment and determination.

For years, there were "CF parents" but that meant the parents had kids with CF. Almost never did it mean that the parent actually had CF. The stereotype of the CF parents is constantly changing. I'm proud to call myself the "new version" of the CF parent but it was a long journey to get there.

In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) is widely known to be financially exhausting. That's certainly not a lie. The procedure, at the time, was not covered by our insurance company and cost nearly as much as a new automobile. What is rarely mentioned, however; is the cost both physically and emotionally that IVF puts on the couple. Andrea and I went through IVF three times before successfully getting pregnant with Avery. It required Andrea going through a brunt of the pain. For me, that was extremely difficult because I knew that I was solely responsible for us having to go through the injections and surgical procedures. Approximately 98% of males with CF do not have a fully formed vas deferens which is the bridge that brings the semen into the penis and allows for "normal" sexual reproduction. My vas deferens was about as reliable as my Braves in an October playoff series. Sorry, I had to go there. Go Falcons by the way!



IVF will never stand for "It's Very Fun."

Andrea and I always wanted to have kids. That was never a question. I had to ask myself though if I was up to the task. Having two amazing parents myself, I understood that parenting required a lot of time. I knew that two hours of cystic fibrosis treatments a day would often get in the way of being 100% attentive to the needs of my children. Then there was the fact that I had a terminal disease. Would it be fair to have children? My doctors told me that my health was very good for someone with cystic fibrosis and I wanted Andrea at the least to have children of her own because I knew that she would make an amazing mother. By the way, I was 100% correct on that prediction. We knew that adoption was probably not going to be an option since most agencies would be hesitant to give a child to someone with a life-threatening disease. After the first IVF "failure," I told myself that if we did have kids that I would be the best father I could. After the second unsuccessful attempt, Andrea and I began to have doubts that we would be successful. It was a really emotional time especially with friends announcing their own pregnancies. Envy definitely creeped into my head.

I'd known for a long time that having kids would be difficult. First off, as a kid I found out that I wasn't even supposed to be around in my twenties. In my early twenties, while still single, I went to an IVF clinic and had my "swimmers" tested. When I found out my sperm was "suboptimal," I was greatly disappointed. Many people wondered why I did this then instead of waiting until I was actually dating someone seriously. It was something I felt was important to share with anyone that I dated regarding our future. As positive as I was, I always wanted to be upfront about my circumstances. It's not like I brought it up on the first date but as a relationship got more serious and my significant other began learning about CF, I wanted to make sure I had the answers she needed. I did of course think of some great ways to bring it up. "You swam competitively in college? What a coincidence! My sperm need swimming lessons." Try not to steal that one.

The third IVF attempt for me and Andrea brought success. It made all of the injections, the surgeries, the financial loss and the emotional pains worth it. We had our baby girl Avery in 2006 and two years later after one less attempt, we had our son, Ethan.



I'm truly blessed.

I kept my promise of doing all I could as a parent. Like Andrea, I participate as much as I can. At night, you'll rarely find me out as I truly enjoy laying with my kids before Andrea and I put them to bed. I have been coaching their little league teams for the last 6 years. I truly enjoy seeing both my kids when I pick them up at carpool because I realize what a blessing it is to be a parent. Yes, after many years of changing diapers and dealing with tantrums, I can still safely say that I love being with my children.



Coaching has been a great way to bond with my kids.

I'm very fortunate that my wife is an extremely active parent. CF forces me to spend a lot of time focusing on my health. While I do my therapy in the mornings, Andrea wakes the kids and makes their lunches. In order to spend more time with my little ones, I do my therapy 3 times a day during school days (they are at school during my added midday therapy) and only twice on the weekend usually when they're asleep (early morning and late night). When I'm sick, my kids understand that I may not be able to pick them up because of the IV implanted in my arm and that I may not kiss them in order to avoid germs. That's commonplace in our house. Speaking of commonplace, my kids don't see my therapy as strange. Sometimes I do an extra therapy in the middle of the day when they are home or an early evening session and they'll just bring a friend by and aren't embarrassed at all to walk by me while I'm doing my vest. Occasionally a kid asks them what I'm doing and I hear my kids say "He's just doing his therapy." It's as if it is as normal a task as brushing one's teeth.



Just daddy doing his vest.

There are other things different about me as the "new version" of the CF parent. I wear a mask during our flights out of town and to the pediatrician's office. I sometimes do my vest in the car while waiting for them in carpool. I like to call myself the "nebulizer driver." I take my pills wherever we go and my kids sometimes have to remind me to put the bottle back in my pocket after I take them.

CF probably affects my kids though they don't have it. I imagine they worry about my health and it makes them worry about their own mortality. As they get older, we'll have more talks about CF as I'm very open to discussing the topic. As of now, they realize that it's mostly a lung disease and that daddy takes a lot of medication and does a lot of therapy to stay well. I tried to convince them that CF means daddy has to watch a lot of sports but they didn't seem to buy that one.

Not a day goes by that I don't give 120% effort into being the best father that I can be. Not a day goes by that I'm not grateful for having a wife who is an amazing mother. Not a day goes by that I don't regret "the decision" to have children.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have another "big decision" on my hands...pop tarts or waffles for breakfast?

Yeah, the decisions have gotten slightly easier but when it comes to loving my kids, no decision is any less important.



Being a parent in a word has been "magical."

Live your dreams and love your life.

Andy

Sweet 16

The number 16. For many it’s just a number that chronologically follows 15 and precedes 17. To me, it’s much more than that. It’s the number that has quietly impacted my life. Some of these coincidences will seem far-fetched but to me, a numbers guy, they make perfect sense. Let me explain.



Sweet 16 indeed

Before I was born, my sister Wendy Carol Lipman (16 letters if you’re counting) lived just 16 days. Wendy was born December 18, 1970 and died January 2, 1971. The number of days between Wendy's death and my birth were 976 (which by the way is divisible by 16 - 61 ((the reverse of 16)) x 16 = 976). Maybe my only regret in life is that I never met her. Still her memory has had a profound effect on me. Rarely will I utter the words “life is not fair” and that’s because I have lived longer than the 16 days that my sister was given. Wish for Wendy, the event we started in her memory to benefit the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, has helped me to realize that I want to help people. The event coincidentally features 16 teams and 16 CF ambassadors and our greatest fundraising year was...well you probably guessed it, our 16th year.

A big influence for me growing up was Alex Miller Deford (16 letters). Alex lived only 8 years (half of 16) but her story captured people’s attention and helped lead to a huge increase in cystic fibrosis fundraising. Without all of that money raised, I doubt we'd have the research that we have today and people like me may not be alive. The book, Alex: The Life of a Child, written by her father and my role model Frank Deford was the single most important book I’ve ever read. Alex coincidentally was born the same year that Wendy died. Oh, and the book was published in 1984 which of course is divisible by 16.

I was born Andrew Cary Lipman (16 letters). That year, 1973, the median life expectancy for people with cystic fibrosis was approximately 16 years. When I turned 16, I received the gift that changed my life. No, it was not a car. It was my therapy vest. It was the gift, that like a car, granted me independence. I didn’t need my parents for postural drainage (hitting my sides, back and front morning and night to clear the mucus from my lungs) anymore. I could go off to college and make something of myself.

Also, when I was 16, the single biggest positive for CF research happened when the CF gene was finally discovered in 1989. This eventually led to breakthrough drugs in the CF community like Kalydeco and Orkambi which in several cases have greatly improved people's lives.

The biggest influence on my life is my wife Andrea Herz Lipman (16 letters) who just happened to be born in Tennessee, the 16th colony to become a state. I admit I'm reaching. While there may be some doubt regarding the number 16's influence here, there's no doubt regarding the impact that Andrea has made on my life. She has made me a better person and given me two gifts that even outweighed the importance of my vest…my children, Avery and Ethan Lipman (a combined 16 letters but you probably figured that out).

In 2016, I was fortunate enough to receive the Alex Award from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. What was even more of an honor was the man who gave it to me just happened to be my role model and Alex Deford’s father, Frank Deford. I received the award from him 32 years after he published the book about his daughter and we all know what 32 is divisible by.

So you see, it has all come full circle. My life has changed a lot in these 43 years on this planet but two things have remained the same.

I'm kicking cystic fibrosis's butt and the unusual occurrence of the number 16.

Live your dreams and love your life!

Best Wishes,

Andy