SB Nation User Blog: TARHEEL PAUL

Cowboys looking at Shaun Suisham and Dave Raymer

TARHEEL PAUL — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 14:05:28 -0000

Two ex redskin kickers are coming in to valley ranch today according to the Dallas News.com website. Raymer has not attempted a field goal this year but Shuisham on the other hand is 18 of 21. I know about the chip shot he missed against the saints and he also missed one against us that would of put us two scores down when we played but i say lets bring the guys in. Hide Folk on IR and lets get someone in here we can count on. 18 of 21 sounds a lot better to me than what we have now. In a playoff push you have to be able to count on your kicker.

What about you guys? Any kickers out there you'd like to see come in to the ranch? I wonder if Morten Anderson could still kick a 45 yard field goal?

Washington Redskins Jokes

TARHEEL PAUL — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 17:41:49 -0000

I think we can all agree that we take pleasure in what is going on int Deadskin nation at this time. So a buddy of mine who happens to be a redskin fan sent me these jokes. Thought some of you might enjoy them. My favorites are the Billy Graham and the Goal Post in the yard. Enjoy.

HEADLINE: "D.C. Police are "cracking" down on speeders. For the first
offense, they give you two Redskins tickets. (If you get stopped a second
time, they give you two Nationals tickets.)"

Q. What do you call 53 millionaires sitting around a TV watching the Super Bowl?
A. The Washington Redskins.

Q. What do the Redskins and Billy Graham have in common?
A. They both can make 90,000 people stand up and yell "Jesus Christ".

Q. How do you keep the Redskins out of your yard?
A. Put up a goal post.

Q. Where do you go in D.C. in case of a tornado?
A. To FedEx Field - they never have a touchdown there!

Q. What do you call a Redskin with a Super Bowl ring?
A. Senior Citizen

Q. What's the difference between the Redskins and a dollar bill?
A. You can still get four quarters out of a dollar bill.

Q. How many Redskins does it take to win a Super Bowl?
A. We may never find out in the 21st century.

Q. What do the Redskins and possums have in common?
A. Both play dead at home and get killed on the road.

If you want to jump ship........then jump ship

TARHEEL PAUL — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 02:14:46 -0000

I just had to get this off my chest. Yes, i like everyone on this site was pissed off at the way the game ended yesterday. But as i listened to the game on the radio on my way home from the airport, it was the final drive for the cowboys and my heart was about to beat out of my chest. Thats when i realized how much i LOVE being a fan of the Dallas Cowboys. There was a previous fan post of a guy quiting on his team after 29 years. Are you serious? What happens if Hurd shields off Champ Bailey the way he should have and caught that ball? You still jumping ship? I doubt it. What happens if Austin comes out of his break toward the sideline like HE WAS SUPOSSED to do and catches that pass instead of Romo taking the blame for another interception that wasn't his fault. Blame Romo all you want, but they didn't lose that game because of Romo. They lost that game as a team.

The O-line gave up 5 count them 5 sacks.

Too many penalties to put them in long down situations.

Receivers not coming out of there routes correctly.

Barber being banged up in the second half.

Williams being hurt on the last two drives. So what you say? How would you have liked to have him for a fade in the last few plays.

You could not use Bennett for one because #1, he has not shown this year that you can count on him, # 2, he had to stay in and block because denver sent the house and our line wasn't blocking squat.

And hey, give Denver's Defense a little credit here. They played a damn good game. A much better game than the "ELITE GIANTS" played against us.

How about the entire secondary on Brandon Marshall's touchdown. Anybody else notice that Jay Ratliff was the one hustling into the endzone trying to catch him from behind while the secondary just sat and watched.

My point is, all the good comes with some bad. And if after 29 years you should realize that. I hate to say it, but that is the classic definition of a bandwagon fan. To jump ship when things get a little rocky. I wonder, was your wife amazed at your Nostrodomus ways when you predicted that Romo would make an awesome play on fourth down to put us in a play to win the game?

Look, everyone is frustrated, and i spent all day pissed off about the game. And trust me when I tell you have more important things in my life going on right now than to worry about the a Cowboys game. But it bothered me that bad. Just as bad as it bothered everybody else that wants to jump ship or bench Romo. So if you want to jump ship then walk the plank. I love the Cowboys through the good and the bad. From 1-15 to the team of the 90's through the Campo years, through the disappointing Parcells years, to the disappointing present. But hope is what keeps me coming back. Next week is what keeps me coming back. Guys like Keith Brooking, Jay Ratliff, Marc Columbo, Jason Witten, Marion Barber, and yes Tony Romo, those are the guys that keep me coming back.

We're 2-2 for goodness sake. Just chill. But if not, make sure you wear a life jacket when you jump so we can scoop you out of the water if things turn around.

[UPDATE]: NOW W/ PICS: Tarheel Paul's Trip To Dallas

TARHEEL PAUL — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 02:08:49 -0000

I've struggled for a couple of weeks now on how I wanted this post to go. I didn't know if I should post about the game itself, the 1st team versus the 2nd team, the positives and negatives of our beloved Cowboys through my beer googles. And then I just decided to do what I have been doing a lot lately and that is speaking from the heart.

Let me start of by simply saying thank you to everyone. Not just for the game tickets or the airline tickets, or the awesome hotel room, or the incredible gift that was waiting for us at the hotel. But thank you for the joy and happiness you brought into our lives. It's been almost 3 months now since we lost our precious baby girl Olivia. And it has been a hell on earth which I can not put into words for anyone to understand. Nor do I want anyone to understand. Trust me when I tell you that you don't want to understand. But for 3 days, we smiled, we laughed, we cheered, we got drunk, we relaxed, and we had a good time. Sure, my thoughts often drifted towards Olivia and how happy she must be to see her Mommy and Daddy happy. But for a short 3 days the world was o.k. again. And that was so nice. It reminded me of how beautiful life can be and how I felt before that tragic day. It gave me hope to push foward and do what I KNOW Olivia would want me to do and that is to be happy, to smile, and to laugh. It's still extreamly hard and not a day goes by that I don't break down at least once because I miss her so bad but I know that part will never go away and I just have to look foward to the day that I do get to see her beautiful face again. And I truly beleive that I will. It will be a day of great rejoycing ! So for now, I must live for her and through her. I can still miss her, I can still cry every day but I also can be happy again. And that is what I took from this trip. And for that I can't thank you enough. You did more than send a fan to a game. You helped save this fan's life.

Thank you with tons of love,

Paul and Tammy

P.S. I have emailed some pics from the game to Raul. I couldn't figure out how to attach them to this post so hopefully he can do it for me.

[UPDATE]: Here are the pics!

Headed To Dallas!

TARHEEL PAUL — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 03:08:34 -0000

Ok guys. It's tuesday night and i just finished packing my bags a day early. Again, a HUGE thanks to everyone that made this possible. What a wonderful group of people to be associated with. The game is coming at a really good time for my wife and I as this past week has been especially hard for the two of us. Not sure why. It just kind of comes and goes like that. The pain and sadness is always there probably always will be there but most of the time I'm able to cope with it a lot better than I have over the last few days. But thats why I say the game is coming at a great time for the both of us. We really needed this and you guys made it possible. But I wanted to post just to let you guys know what my plans are upon arrival.

The flight is scheduled to arrive in Dallas somewhere around noon. So 1st things first, find a cab and haul ass to the very nice hotel you guys have provided me with.

My next stop will be to a store that sales school supplies as i plan to get some construction paper and make a couple of signs and hopefully get on t.v. One sign will be giving props to BTB. The other I'm saving for my baby girl.

My next stop........well, i really don't know. Just relaxing and enjoying ourselves I suppose. I'm sure I'll drink a beer or 15 sometime during the day. But i want to get a good nights sleep for the big day. Last year when I went to the Ravens game (which happened to be my 1st game at texas stadium) my flight came in the same day as the game and i was completely exhausted. So i want to be nice and fresh for game day so i can scream and yell like its a playoff game and not a preseason game.

Gameday.......Not really sure what I'm going to do all day since kickoff isn't until 7pm central time. I'm sure i will show up at the stadium a couple of hours early to take lots of pics and just walk around the place and check it out. I will try to report back to you guys the best i can on the pure awesomeness of the stadium. If there is anything anybody would like me to take a pic of just leave a comment below and I will be sure to get it for you.

There will be a lot of down time between the time we land and the game on the next day. I've only been to Dallas one other time so I need some suggestions for places to eat and place to go and do stuff. We will actually be staying in Arlington near the Stadium so if anybody has any suggestions please let me know.

Once again I just want to thank all of you from the bottom of my heart and Tammy's as well. We only have two tickets but I can promise you Olivia will be there on my shoulders screaming "GO COWBOYS!!!!" Just as we used to do together around the house. So again, thank you, thank you, thank you, and thank you.

Now lets hope for a win even if it is preseason.

Preseason Tickets to Home Opener

TARHEEL PAUL — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 22:50:31 -0000

This is not a post i really wanted to make but i have to. First i would like to say thank you to all the BTB'ers that were willing to surrender those tickets to me. It brought some sunshine into an other wise dark life. But my wife and I are going to have to respectfully decline the tickets. We just flat out can not afford the trip at this time. Believe me, we tried every way possible to make it happen but we just could not do it. Things are really tight right now with both of us missing so much work and having to pay for things that we never ever imagined having to pay for. I won't everyone to understand that this is not a plea for donations or anything like that. You guys have done enough with all of your comments, prayers, and the tickets themselves. It absolutely sucks because i was really looking foward to it but, facts are facts and right now we just can't afford it. So I didn't want to wait till the last second and have the tickets and then not be able to go. I dont know what he is going to do about redistrubting the tickets to some other lucky person but who ever gets them keep me and my baby girl in your thoughts. Again, thanks to everyone who agreed to give me the tickets. I just apologize for not being able to hold up my end of deal.

Thanks again everyone,

Tarheel Paul

Thank you BTB Nation, From Tarheel Paul

TARHEEL PAUL — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 03:05:05 -0000

I feel like i owe it to all of you to say thank you. Thank you for all of the prayers, well wishes, and the heartfelt comments that you left on my behalf. I promise you i read everyone of them and it truly warmed my heart. Sometimes I go back and read them over and over just because it makes me feel a little better.

I would also like to give you an update on how my wife and I are doing. I wish i could say its getting a little bit easier everyday but that would be lie. Its been 37 days since I lost my precious Olivia. I have my moments when i can relax and smile but they don't usually last that long. I know this stuff is depressing but im just trying to speak from my heart. That is why it has taken me so long to post again. I just wasn't quite sure what to say. When you lose your heart and soul everything gets turned upside down and the world no longer makes any sense. And thats about the best way I can describe my feelings. Olivia Grace Leatherman was truly and honestly my heart and soul. She was everything to me. Everyday is a struggle. I have to wake up every morning and instead of packing my little girls lunch and dropping her off at preschool, I basically roll out of bed and go straight to work and try my best to make it through the day as fast as I can just so I can get home and feel close to her. I just miss her so much that its beyond words. My wife and I have been going to grief counseling and that has helped some but after awhile theres not much else you can say. My days basically consist of work, a lot of crying, a lot questiong god, a lot of anger towards god, and loveing my wife like there is no tommorrow. She has been amazingly strong through this whole thing. We have grown even closer. We hold each other up and take turns falling apart. The rest of my family has been great as well. They all hurt and cry with me but they are there to make sure I don't completely lose my mind. Especially my brother. I call him atleast 2 or 3 times a week around 11pm and we just talk and cry together. He is the best big brother you could ask for. He just happens to be a new member to the site as well, he goes by Capn B. Die hard Cowboy fan like myself.

Well, I don't want to depress you guys anymore than what i already have. I apologize for the downer but it helps me to write it out. And I truly do know that WE ARE ALL FAMILY and we care about one another. I love each and everyone one of you and again I ask that you all hug your children a little tighter from now on. Tell them how much you love them even if they get tired of hearing it. I know I did.

Also HUGE THANKS to everyone that agreed to donate the tickets to my wife and I. An amazing gift from a group of amazing people. I just can't thank you enough for that. Olivia would be so happy to know that I get to go to the first Cowboys game at the new stadium. She will be there in my heart! And to end this post I would like to quote my baby girl and say "GO COWBOYS". Thats what she knew football as. Anytime a game was on t.v. it was GO COWBOYS, not football. So once again "GO COWBOYS!!!",

With much love and thanks,

Paul

[UPDATED]: This Cowboys fan needs your love

TARHEEL PAUL — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 23:52:51 -0000

Often times we throw around the words like "Cowboys nation or Cowboys Family". We saw it come to life in a major way with the Rich Behm Story. Well, this weekend I lost my 4 year old baby girl in a horrible accident. She is the picture on my profile. She was absolutely my whole world, my soul, my entire life. I really don't like to put this kind of news on my cowboy brothers that come here to read about our cowboys. But i need all of the love and prayers i can get. Because of my job, i don't have a lot of close by friends and i consider this web site and all of its members like friends. Well, i need all of you now as i am not sure how to continue to live but i know that i have to breathe everyday for my baby girl. I'm just reaching out to all of you for your prayers because my wife and i need them more than you will ever know. I thank you and i love all of you.

[UPDATE by Grizz]: I wanted to let everybody know I’ve been corresponding with Tarheel Paul over email and he wanted me to let you guys know some things.

BTB is more than just a blog about the Cowboys for him, it’s a community, it’s family. The rare moments of “normalcy” in Paul’s life right now is when he reads the blog.

He is reading everybody’s comments and is very appreciative of every one of them.

He wants all parents out there to remember to hug their children and tell them that you love them. He takes solace in the fact that he did that all the time with his baby girl and that she would sometimes say “Daddy, stop saying that all the time.” Paul would tell her he’ll never stop saying that.

He sends his love back to all of you.