Birthday and Basketball Lingerings

My birthday may have been last Thursday, but the benefits just keep on coming. Gifts and cards keep trickling in and all of the new toys, bones and treats around the office kept me quite busy today.

More thank you's go to Chris Carlson and her kitties, Champ, Ella, and Mirand Shook...I appreciate the cards and gifts!

Today started off well for a Monday. On my walk into the office I enjoyed the spring air and temperatures as well as the stinch of the fresh mulch recently spread around campus. We quickly made our way to Atherton Union to begin the day for a meet and greet with 15 international students. I think they were all from Taiwan, but now I cannot remember.

Today was their first official day on campus so I got to be one of the first to welcome them to the Butler Bulldog family. They took lots of pictures and gave me plenty of love.

After a lunch-time visit to the HRC while my dad worked out, we got to go to Robertson Hall for the Office of Admission's Junior Preview Day. I was there to greet high school juniors and their families, but I was more interested in the rice krispie treats and cookies that were being served.

After that, I spent the afternoon playing with my new toys, barking for no good reason and taking naps.

The fun all came to an end tonight though with the thunderstorms rolled into Indianapolis. I was sound asleep in the living room when the first flash of lighthing and rumble of thunder awakened me. I quickly located my parents and began to shake in fear, before finally retreating to my cage to hide from storms.

My parents try to comfort me and tell me that they won't let the storms hurt me, but if they are in such control, then why don't they just turn off the storms all together? I don't get it. Regardless, I'm not looking forward to making a trip back outside before bed to relieve myself.

Before I do brave the weather to take care of business, I wanted to let everyone know that in spite of the basketball season being over, a couple of our beloved Bulldogs will be in action one more time this weekend.

Seniors A.J. Graves and Mike Green be heading to San Antonio, Texas, to participate in special events surrounding the NCAA Final Four. Graves will be entered in the 3-Point Championship, while Green has been selected to play in the college All-Star Game.

For TV times and more information, click here: http://butlersports.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/033108aac.html

Good luck, A.J. and Mike! We're all pulling for you guys.

Blue II

Happy Birthday to Me!

Well, another birthday has come and gone and after four years, I’m now 28 years old. It’s true. Do the math. This is the one time that my dad and I will be the same age. In just a month or two, I’ll surpass him.

I must say that this has been the best birthday I’ve ever had since this was the first time that a university-wide party has been thrown in my honor. For my first birthday, we had a staff party down in the basement of Jordan Hall amongst the University Advancement staff and some friends, but since then, nothing formal has really been done until now. That first birthday part was fun…maybe a little too much fun….hence the video on www.youtube.com/butlerblue2 of me throwing up part of the cake I got. Oops. Too much of a good thing, I guess.

Thanks to the Butler University Student Foundation (BUSF) with some assistance from the Student Government Association (SGA), the first-ever Blue II Birthday Party was held on campus for all students, faculty and staff to join in. I’m biased, but I think it was a raving success! I didn’t even regurgitate anything this year either!

The party was from 11-1 and setup in Starbuck’s just off the bookstore in the one and only, Atherton Union. By 10:55 a.m. there was a line and I had not even made a grand entrance yet. By 12:30 p.m., all 480 cookies and 240 cupcakes were consumed. Luckily, SGA came in with back up supplying soda and other giveaways.

Congratulations to Nolan Yeakley for winning the “Guess Blue II’s Weight” contest. Nolan’s name was drawn from all the entries that correctly guessed my weight at 60 lbs. If you had your picture taken with me on the staff’s digital camera, please email jmjones@butler.edu to obtain a copy of that file.

I think there was a line the entire time for guests to get their picture with me. Many of them found out the hard way that if they are holding a cookie while trying to get their picture with me, I’m going to try and eat it. I am a dog, who acts on instinct, after all.

As advertised, there was a oversized card for guests to sign and there was the “pin the tail on the dawg” game as well. Here’s a little video for reference of all of the aforementioned: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svezCbvhonw

I also want to thank Stephanie Smith who brought me several gifts the other day, my best friend Kirby who brought me a basketball, Olivia who got me a bone, Anabelle who made me a card, everyone else that stopped by the party and/or got me a gift, and BUSF, SGA, and the Office of Alumni and Parent Programs for throwing me a party. You’ve all kept me very spoiled!

It means a lot to be appreciated like that. Everyone should be so lucky, at least once in their life. As far as dogs go, I’m one of the luckiest and it’s something I don’t take for granted, so I thanks to everyone for making a big to-do over my date of birth.

Also, I want to give a big shout-out to my Shih Tzu cousin, Murphy, in Columbus, Ohio who shares the same birthday with me…happy birthday Prince Murphy Alouicious!

In other news, the University of Tennessee Volunteers lost to the Louisville Cardinals last night in the NCAA tournament. You may remember the Volunteers knocked out the Bulldogs last Sunday in overtime. The Cards destroyed the Vols 79-60! Dude, they lost by 19 points…I want another shot at the title. Way to represent. (That’s sarcasm.)

Granted, the Cards are good, but are they that much better than Tennessee? I wouldn’t think so. I sure would like to see how the Bulldogs would fair against them. Oh well, it’s a moot point now.

What can I say? I’m still a bitter Bulldog after last Sunday’s defeat.

Thanks again to everyone for the great birthday! Let’s do it again next year. Have a great weekend, watch the IndyCar Series race on ESPN2 on Saturday night at 8:30 p.m. (EST) and be sure to stop and smell the roses…I always do!

Blue II

More Chelsea Clinton

When I published my post last night, these tidbits were not available, so I thought I would update the blog with them today.

You can't actually see me in this video, but you can hear Chelsea acknowledge me at least. I'm not sure that's worth anything, but it happened, thus, I'm posting it. You only need to watch about the first 15 seconds, unless you are really bored.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3dRftmeq8E

Also, The Indianapolis Star has photos up at http://www.indystar.com/ in the "multimedia" section. Below is the one with me in it that Charlie Nye.

That's me, Sean Astin and Chelsea entertaining a nice photo-op on the Butler Seal.

Blue II

A Tough Loss, Tomorrow's Leaders and the Former First Daughter

Unfortunately, the Butler University men’s basketball season came to a close yesterday afternoon as our Bulldogs were defeated in overtime by the University of Tennessee in the second round of the NCAA Tournament by a score of 76-71. It most assuredly wasn’t our best showing on the court this season, but one thing is for certain, like true Bulldogs, our team never gave up…they fought tooth and nail to the bitter end, an end that came all to quickly for this mascot.

In spite of the tough loss, the boys had an incredible season totaling a school-record 30-wins and only four losses, including a Great Alaska Shootout Title, Horizon League regular season and tournament championships and the team’s highest ever national ranking of 8th.

Thus, this team made me, Butler Blue II, the most decorated Butler mascot in school history with regard to men’s basketball. Not only did I witness our first 30-win season, but that added to my overall record of 92 and 39 since the 2004-05 season. Of the games that I've actually attended, I am 49-8 and in the NCAA Tournament I have a record of 3-2.

In appreciation of the team’s efforts, I was present at their arrival back to campus on Sunday night outside of Gate 1 at Hinkle Fieldhouse. It was a bit of a somber affair, but the students in attendance did their best to let the team know just how proud of them we were. Like so many of our teams in the last several years, they made us proud to be Bulldogs and they helped to put our school on the map.

For a video of their return, visit BlueTube at: www.YouTube.com/butlerblue2.

The hangover of defeat was heavy on the hearts of those on campus on Monday. There was just no way around the sadness so I retreated to my cage on Monday morning to sleep it off. I just wasn't ready to see the season end and I guess David Letterman wasn't either: http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/2008/03/25/david-letterman-thinks-butler-deserves-another-chance-against-te/

Monday night was bath time as I had to get prepared for my big day today. I started off the morning with a trip to Pine Tree Elementary School in Avon, Ind. There my dad and I visited eight classes between kindergarten and third grade. We read books to over 250 kids and handed out my READ posters and bookmarks to the teachers and students.

Actually, I let my dad handle the book reading while I took care of the "looking good" part. We make a great team.

After that it was back to campus to rest up for my next big visit with former “First Daughter,” Chelsea Clinton and actor Sean Astin, better known as “Rudy, ” or "Mikey" from The Goonies or son of Patty Duke. Take your pick.

Both were on the campaign trail, stumping for Democratic Presidential hopeful, Hillary Clinton. Keep in mind, I don't do politics, so I could care less about their background, their beliefs, policies, experience, etc. I just ask that people register to vote and then do so on election day.

Sean was really excited to see me, saying something like "This dog is awesome!" But for as much as Sean was impressed, I'm not so sure Chelsea was all that awestruck. Perhaps she's still partial to Buddy, the former First Dog, God rest his soul.



We all posed for a quick photo-op before Sean introduced Chelsea in front of a packed Starbucks cafe in Atherton Union.



Tomorrow I get to visit with more of "tomorrow's leaders" only this time on Butler's campus as those young students participating in the College Mentors for Kids! program will be coming to campus.

Of course, Thursday is my fourth birthday and the Butler University Student Foundation is inviting all students, faculty, and staff to Starbucks from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. to celebrate my big day. There will be free cupcakes and treats, pin-the-tail-on-the-dawg, and other fun games and prizes.

I'm not sure all of that is necessary, but I'm happy to oblige.

I'll report back after the big birthday bash with a full commentary on the event and the day itself. Here's to hoping I get something good present or two!

Blue II

The Microphone Chomp

I forgot to post this last evening so I wanted to get it up on the blog today. Below is a link to a clip from Indianapolis' WTHR, NBC Channel 13 coverage of the Butler viewing parties around town yesterday.

Before the viewing parties got started, Cat, Matt and Korey from Channel 13 came by the office to get some footage of me. I was pretty wound up at the time having just come from greeting Butler's newest Bulldogs at an Office of Admission Early Registration.

When Cat asked me who I thought was going to win that day's game between Butler and S. Alabama, I figured that I would just let my actions do the talking. Message sent.

Check it out: http://www.wthr.com/global/video/flash/popupplayer.asp?ClipID1=2312907&h1=Butler%20fans&vt1=v&at1=News&d1=130134&LaunchPageAdTag=Homepage&activePane=info&rnd=19110816

We captured our 30th win yesterday which is a new school record. I want more...even if it takes eating a whole camera this time!

Go Dawgs, Beat Vols!

Blue II

Next Up...Smokey

Congratulations to the Butler men's basketball team and their 81-61 victory over South Alabama today in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. "Pickums" results hold true yet again.

Next up...Smokey and the Tennessee Volunteers on Sunday afternoon. I took Smokey down once last season in the pre-season NIT at New York's Madison Square Gargden. I'm looking to go 2-0 on the old hound.

Game time is 2:30 p.m. (EST) on Easter Sunday. I'm already excited!

In addition to my video profile that was created by Kelly Wilkinson on IndyStar.com's multimedia section which can be found here: http://gannett.a.mms.mavenapps.net/mms/rt/1/site/gannett-indianapolis-532-pub01-live/current/launch.html?maven_playerId=immersiveplayer&maven_referralPlaylistId=playlist&maven_referralObject=689727112

Kelly also put up an album of still photos that she took while she was shooting that video. You can see those here: http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?Category=MULTIMEDIA

Look for the album titled, "It's a dog's life...Butler Blue II."


I hope everyone has a safe and happy Easter that includes a Butler victory!

Blue II

Pickums!

Last season, my dad and Uncle Kyle always had me play a game that they called, "Blue's Pickums." The idea is simple, on game day, Uncle Kyle writes "Butler" on one sheet of paper, and Butler's opponent on another. He then folds them up, places a treat on each one, and has me walk over and select one.

The team written on the paper I select will be the winner of that day's game.

Like I said, last season, we played this game all of the time, but for whatever reason, we have yet to play "pickums" this year. I guess Uncle Kyle felt like today was a good day to try (Butler plays South Alabama in the first round of the NCAA Tournament) it again so we set it up and I did my thing.

Check out the video to see the verdict:

I can't remember a time that I didn't pick Butler, and we've probably played this game a dozen times. It just never fails, and yes, every time I've played this game and selected Butler, they've won, so my record is on the line.

Blue II

I Made the Cover of Sports Illustrated!

I wouldn’t say my life as a mascot is complete just yet, but a major notch in the wood has been made with the news that yours truly graces the cover of the Sports Illustrated (SI) NCAA March Madness issue.

You may remember each year that SI does a collage of photos for their March Madness issue, well this year, I was included in the collage. Albeit, a half-inch by inch spot, but I am quite visible in the top right hand corner of the cover wearing my Dawg Pound shirt and carrying my bone.

I can only speak for the canine eye, but I’m told that the upper right hand corner of any printed page is always where the human eye goes first in reading in English, and is considered “prime real estate.” I’ll take it!

You’ll see me and fellow Bulldog, A.J. Graves on the cover, but A.J. also has a two page spread inside the issue as well. He’s doing cartwheels at center court. That’s not a joke. Also on page 67, blog reader and senior Drew Streicher is shown for making SI's All-Tournament Brainiac Team.

As elated as I am with my cover shot, I am almost as equally deflated with it. Let me explain. So last night, my pops and I hop on the internet to check out a bit further. We go here: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/basketball/ncaa/specials/ncaa_tourney/2008/cover_challenge/

And what do you know, they have ME, Butler Blue II, the Butler University Mascot, listed as “Drake Bulldog – Drake Bulldogs Mascot.” Are you kidding me? I get my shot at big time national exposure and SI mistakes me for “Spike,” the Drake Bulldog!

C’mon SI, it’s sports…that’s what you do! You can’t be getting mascots incorrect, and on the cover no less! That would be like listing Indiana’s D.J. White as “Purdue Pete,” or labeling UNC’s Tyler Hansborough as “Mike Kryzewski.” People would have you taken behind the wood shed for that sort of thing.

I’m just hoping they didn’t list me that way in the actual print edition because that would be a dog-gone shame. Pun intended.

(And yes, the University Relations staff at Butler is informing SI of their mistake.)

I am willing to forgive them for the whole thing and put it behind me if they are willing to write up a nice multi-page profile about me in a future issue and they consider giving me another cover shot, much like UGA’s a while back. (And to anyone with Nike connections, yes, I would like a custom Butler Nike jersey like UGA's Georgia version.)



Yesterday I got to go to the “send-off” pep rally for the Butler men’s basketball team over at Hinkle Fieldhouse. We sang “The Butler War Song,” did cheers with the cheerleaders, and just let the team know how proud we are of them before they headed to Birmingham, Alabama to take on South Alabama in the NCAA Tournament.

One thing of note from the rally, Butler President, Dr. Bobby Fong, gave A.J. Graves a hug when he went through and shook hands with each of the players. I’ve got no problem with that, unless A.J. goes for only two points in our game on Friday. If that happens, I bet nobody gives Dr. Fong the same harassment I received when A.J. touched me on “Senior Day,” then went for a career low. I’m just saying, fair is fair here, people.

You can see a photographic documentation of the rally on IndyStar.com with photos taken by one of my favorite photographers, Kelly Wilkinson. Go to the multimedia section or here: http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?Category=MULTIMEDIA

You’ll notice there’s a couple photos in the collection of dad and I. Since the NCAA won’t allow live mascots at tournament sites, I’ve been pretty bummed about not getting to go to the game. So dad tried to be funny and throw me into the cargo bay of the bus and sneak me down to Birmingham. His accomplice is Carl Heck. Both are now on my "list."

While you are also in the multimedia section, you can see the debut of my profile video that Kelly shot as well! You may remember me posting about that a while back. Well, it’s finally finished and ready for viewing. Look for the video titled “Butler’s mascot” and check it out here: http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?Category=videonetwork

Unfortunately, it’s only about three minutes long. Kelly actually shot enough footage to probably put together an hour long piece, but oh well; I’ll take what I can get. Great job, Kelly! I love it and thank you!

Today, I’ll be shooting another documentary at the office. It’s true, a group of students from a media arts class had to pick something to do a documentary on as a part of a class project. They chose me and shooting starts today. It should be fun.

I think that’s about it for now. Oh, I almost forgot, I have a couple of announcements before I sign off. First, don’t forget to vote for me again in the Bissell MVP challenge. I’m still trying to get on this vacuum box and I’m running out of chances so help me out!

Hopefully Bissell wouldn’t list me as the Drake Bulldog on their vacuum box. I can’t let it go. Anyway, click here to vote for me: https://bumail.butler.edu/owa/redir.aspx?URL=http%3a%2f%2fwww.bissell.com%2fredirect.asp%3fpage_id%3d47161%26Pet%3d1449

Second, I have a birthday party coming up! I turn four on Thursday March 27th, and the nice students in the Butler University Student Foundation (BUSF) are throwing a party for me during lunch time over at Atherton Union. They will be playing “pin the tail on the bulldog,” figuratively, not literally, as well as a “guess the weight of Blue II” contest and other fun stuff. I’ll let you know how that all goes.

Finally, don’t forget to clear your afternoon schedule tomorrow for the Butler NCAA Tournament game at 2:45 p.m. (EST). There are plenty of Butler viewing parties around the country which can be found here: http://www.butler.edu/alumni/?pg=4781

Besides being the first day of spring, it’s also the “most wonderful time of the year,” as today is the official beginning of “March Madness.” Make sure the volume on your computer is up loud so all your co-workers can hear it. It's time....

http://www.ilovewavs.com/TV/Sports/TV%20Theme%20-%20CBS,%20NCAA%20Basketball.wav

Blue II

Selection Sunday Recap

It was a late night yesterday evening, but it was worth it. In case you missed it, I was on live with Anthony Calhoun ("AC" [pictured]) on Indianapolis' WISH-TV Channel 8 and their Sports Locker program. The show airs live at 11:15 p.m. on Sunday evenings, so I had to stay up late, but it was worth it.

Since it was "Selection Sunday" and the Butler Bulldogs are headed to the NCAA Tournament, AC wanted to have me in studio for effect, if nothing else. I absolutely loved it. At first the robotic cameras scared me, but once I got used to it all, I really enjoyed being on camera, in studio and hanging out at the sports desk with fellow on-air talent Chris Widlic, Jeane Coakley and the crew. I can't wait to do it again sometime. Here's a little video...

Speaking of "Selection Sunday," I can't say that I was too pleased with Selection Committee's decision to give Butler a 7 seed in the tournament. Don't get me wrong, it's our second highest seed in school history and I'm happy to be there, but given that we were ranked in the AP Poll again today at the 11th spot (above all other schools from the state of Indiana), clearly we could have been given a little better positioning.

I think all Butler fans heard the thud of the figurative ball being dropped by the Selection Committee early yesterday evening. Oh well, like I said, it's still a privelage to be in the tournament and regardless of your ranking, you have to win to advance, so let's just focus on the task at hand and win some games!

During my tenure as mascot, Butler has an NCAA Tournament record of 2-1. I'd like to keep adding to the win column.

While the Bulldogs are headed to Birmingham, Alabama for their game against South Alabama (anything jump out at you there), this Bulldog won't be making the trip. That's right, we heard back from the NCAA regarding our inquiry about live mascots and tournament sites. They shot us down citing "too many potential issues and a wide range of variables."

I guess I can't argue with that since I can't speak for my live mascot counterparts in the business, but I can tell you this, when it comes to me and the guy-in-suit mascots, they might want to concern themselves with the guy-in-suit version.

Take for instance the Oral Roberts/IUPUI debacle last week at the Summit League Tournament. You can view that here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2x7Yk8NNg3k

Oh well, I'll let it slide for now, but if by some chance Butler makes an appearance in the Final Four, you can bet I'll be fighting tooth and claw for them to allow me to make the trip. I swear that I saw Jack the Georgetown Hoya at the Final Four last year.

Anyway, all the best to our Butler Bulldogs on Friday at 2:45 p.m. Take care of business boys and earn that respect you so deserve!


Blue II

Indy Residents: Set Your DVR

Dear Central Indiana/Indianapolis Metro Residents:

After you've finished watching the Selection Sunday broadcast to see where Butler lands in the field of 65 for the NCAA men's basketball tournament, be sure to set your DVR for WISH-TV CBS Channel 8 tonight, (March 16, 2008) for 11:00 p.m. (EST).

Specifically, you'll want to catch WISH-TV's Sports Locker segment with Anthony Calhoun that starts at 11:15 p.m.

That's really all I can say at this time. I just wanted to provide a little teaser.

I'll report back on Monday with full disclosure on the topic as well as canine analysis of Butler's seed in the NCAA tournament and respective road to the Final Four.

Blue II

Horizon League Tournament Champs

It's official, the Butler University men's basketball team is not only the regular season Horizon League champions, but they are also the Horizon Leauge Tournament champions as well. A feat they had not repeated since 2001.

There's actually too many accolades to list from this game/season, so just check out The Indianapolis Star's David Woods, and his recap from last night's affair: http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080312/SPORTS06/803120471

In addition to Mr. Woods, Star photographer Heather Charles was hard at work last night as well. Her first two shots from last night's game are quite good if I say so myself. I have added the two aforementioned pictures below. If you'd like to see the rest of her great shots, look here: http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?Category=MULTIMEDIA


I know a lot of you were in attendance or watched live on ESPN. Either way, you most assuredly caught a glimpse of me doing my gameday thing. There are unconfirmed reports via text messages on my dad's cell phone that I was on screen during the broadcast as much as four times! Not bad for not even playing in the game.

We heard that during the game last night there was some sort of "Butler commercial" or promo. We are not aware of any such thing, but we didn't get to see it either. A friend and faithful blog reader, Jackie, posted this in the comments section:

Blue, Last night, during the televised game on ESPN, there was a mid-major commercial for Butler. It featured 3 cheerleaders, and some people who work in the cafeteria. At one point, the cheerleaders were crowded around the big cement statue in front of Atherton. The commercial would have been much better if you were in it. Are you planning to do a Butler commercial in the future?

Good question, Jackie. I can't believe they used a concrete stand-in for this so-called "commercial" that was aired last night. I don't know if there's another commercial in the works, but I'll have to get my people in talks to get that worked out. Let's face it, if a Butler commercial doesn't feature the live mascot (in this case: me, with emphasis on "live") then it's not official. Granted, I'm a little biased, but I think that's a fair statement.

Anyway, the game was great. It was bittersweet since it was my last home game this season and the last home game for our beloved seniors(pictured), but it was more sweet than anything given the circumstances, outcome, etc.


While I enjoy all of the pre-game rituatls and activities that I participate in, last night's game was more unique for it's post-game fun. I typically end up on the court after most home games to pose for pictures and mingle with fans, but given the ceremonies (trophy presentations, net cutting, etc.) we got to enjoy a lot of fanfare after the game.

I got to take pictures with the Horizon League Tournament Trophy, pose with Pete Campbell and Drew Streicher (a special shout-out to Drew who, I understand, reads my blog), mingle with the media and even tear up a cardboard box at half court!


Again, thanks to the Horizon Leauge for the box...they left a box on the sidelines that was used for the HL Championship t-shirts, so I helped myself. It was great fun to thrash on the box at center court and have a little crowd watching as well. Good times.

Given the late start time of the game, we finally got home sometime after mid-night and into bed at 1 a.m. Needless to say, I was tired when it was time to head to the office this morning. Today was a standard day at the office. Much sleeping, some playing, and a lot of just hanging out. Remember, you can catch all of this insanely captivating activity on Blue2TV.

The big buzz around the office today, outside of the basketball game, was an e-mail that was sent on Tuesday afternoon to alumni, parents and friends of the university. It's a really cool piece and definitely worth the watch, especially because I am in it. (Would you expect anything less?) To watch it, click here: http://www.pursuant4.com/butler/buselect/email_1.asp

After a full day at the office, I was off on a trip up to Carmel, Ind. for an appointment with the Official Veterinarian of Butler Unviersity and Butler graduate, Dr. Kurt Phillips (pictured) of Woodland Animal Hospital. My mom noticed that my ear has been bothering me this week, so they took me up to see the good doctor. Sure enough, Dr. Phillips diagnosed an ear infection and gave me some meds.


As it turns out, the ear infection was a result of not getting my ears dried out enough after that little bath I took on Sunday. You remember...the one that's on YouTube and has all of that incriminating footage of me in a tub. Thanks, parents.

Whomever said your parents always know what is best for you was lying. My parents give me the hard-sell on why I should take a bath, blah, blah, blah, so I oblige and what do I get for my trouble (besides internet humiliation)? An ear infection!

No "Worlds Greatest Dad/Mom" t-shirts or mugs for them any time in the near future.

Back to ballers...the 29-3 Butler Bulldogs are awaiting their NCAA Tournament assignment which will be handed out this Sunday, a.k.a. "Selection Sunday," and I am eagerly anticipating the Dawg's first matchup in the "Big Dance."

For whatever reason, I've always been under the impression that live mascots were not allowed at NCAA tournament sites. I had my dad check with his peeps at the NCAA, and that might not actually be the case. The verdict is still out, so we'll see what happens. Should I be cleared to go, the game location be relatively close, and the stars align, I might just be hitting the road as well. I'll keep you posted on how that develops. I'm crossing my paws in hopes that it all works out.

Blue II

ESPN All Access - Butler Bulldogs

If you've yet to see ESPN's "All Access" footage of the Butler Bulldogs men's basketball team, check it out: http://sports.espn.go.com/broadband/video/videopage?&brand=null&videoId=3287712&n8pe6c=2

Of course, I'm in it, so look for that too. My appearance is toward the beginning and Willie Veasly is petting me.

My dad wants to apologize for having an untucked shirt on in the background...we had just finished setting up the West Gym in Hinkle Fieldhouse for hospitality so he was a bit unkempt when I decided to break loose and run on the main floor during practice.

I also wanted to let everyone know they could vote for me again in the Bissell MVP Contest: http://www.bissell.com/redirect.asp?page_id=47128&Pet=1148

Thanks for the vote, enjoy the video and Go Dawgs!

Blue II

FLASH LIGHT!

Thirty years ago, when the funk band, Parliament, released the song "Flash Light," I think they were on to something.

The flash light drives me crazy! I don't know what it is, but when I hear the click and see the light, I go absolutely nuts!


It's a great way for me to play and get out some agression. When the flash light comes out, I usually just find the nearest toy, shake the heck out of it, and try and get the light while running all over the room.

The recipe is simple: just take one bulldog, add a toy, add one household flash light and hilarity is sure to ensue.

The following is a dramatization of said occurence:

Also, Spring is in the air here in Indianapolis. I can just feel it! I'm loving these mid-40s and 50-degree temperatures. I call it "bulldog weather."

It's allowed me to do some sun bathing on the deck.


Who needs South Beach? (Note the snow still lon the deck.)

Alright, I'm off to bed. We've got a big game tomorrow night and I need to rest up. I'll be burning both ends of the candle these next few days!

Blue II

A New Friend, Sparky the Dragon, HL Tournament, and Bath Time

Well, how did my web cameras (read Blue2TV) affect your productivity on the job this past week? Add that to March Madness and by May you’ll be on the streets looking for work.

In addition to staring on my own lifecasting network this week, I also got to meet a new friend on Thursday. Her name is Reese, as in “Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups,” and she’s a 12-week old Daschund. She belongs to Jason and Betsy Weatherly of Nashville, Tenn.

I don’t think Reese knew what to think of me at first. After all, she’s so small that she was even scared of my toys, because like me, they are all bigger than her too!

When I first saw her, I thought she might be a new toy, but then I realized it was a real dog. I didn’t know they made them so small! I think I was bigger than her before I even had my eyes open as a newborn pup. (See pictures below.)


After a while she warmed up pretty well and we had a great time. While I like being the sole dog at home, it was kind of fun to have playmate around too.

I ended up having too much fun on Thursday night with Reese and staying up way past my bed time, so if you logged on to Blue2TV on Friday morning, you probably just saw me sleeping. I know, I know, that’s nothing new, but I was REALLY sleeping on Friday morning.

Once I woke up, it was time to head over to the West Gym in Hinkle Fieldhouse to setup the Bulldog Club/OBS hospitality area for Saturday’s Horizon League Men’s Basketball Tournament games.

Actually, I don’t do any setting up, I let my dad and his colleagues handle that. I just run around the wide-open space of the West Gym and wear myself out.

On Saturday, I got to sleep-in and then went to the HRC while my dad worked out. After that, it was a quick trip back home and then back to campus for the HL Tournament to watch the Bulldogs take on the UIC Flames for an opportunity to play in the finals on Tuesday.

That’s right, I said UIC Flames. When teams started picking the Earth’s natural elements as mascots, I’m not sure. Just think, instead of an English Bulldog writing this blog right now, maybe it could be the “wind,” “air,” or “water.” Seriously, “flames,” that’s the best you could do? I feel bad for the mascot costume maker that got that work order. No matter what you construct, you can’t win on that deal.

Oh well, I’m going to make fun of it anyway. Just look at this thing, they call “Sparky the Dragon.” It looks like said mascot costume maker scraped the whole flame idea and just went for a cartoonish pre-historic dinosaur that appears to be a reject from the Barney show. I get that a dragon breathes “flames,” but that’s stretching it, ya’ think?



Perhaps it’s just a left over costume from the Jim Henson’s HBO show, Fraggle Rock, sans the crazy hair.


Anyway, back on point, the Bulldogs braved the heat of the Flames to win convincingly by a score of 66-50. (That sentence was so cliché, but that’s what you get when your mascot is the “Flames.” You will always be written about in cliché fashion.)

A.J. Graves did not pet me before this match-up and went for 14 points in the game. It’s interesting…for his entire career, people have pleading for him to pet the dog during the announcement of starting lineups. He finally did on Senior Day and only scored two points. Now before games people are coming up to me and saying, “Don’t let Graves touch you!” Whatever people…just be careful what you wish for.

Up next are the Vikings of Cleveland State for the HL Tournament title which will air live on ESPN, Tuesday, March 11th at 9 p.m. from Hinkle Fieldhouse. The winner will not only take the title, but receive an automatic berth into the men’s NCAA tournament. I already can’t wait to have one last game at home this season.

Also, a special thanks to Joel Barnhill of the Horizon League for ordering promotional shirts to be thrown out during the games. I didn’t get a shirt, but I did get to destroy one of the boxes the shirts came in after the game over at the south Dawg Pound. The box was addressed to Joel so I figured he was the appropriate person to thank.

A congratulations is in order for the Lady Bulldogs of the women’s basketball program on getting their 20th win on the season Saturday as they took down Valparaiso. They will now prepare for their own Horizon League Tournament and a chance for post-season play. Well done!

Today, Sunday, I again got to sleep-in, followed by another trip to the HRC. After that it was more skateboard practice and some sun-bathing on the deck.

I then took a nap during the NASCAR race (because that’s what you do during those things) and after that it was bath time. I don’t dislike baths, but I don’t really get all pumped up for them either. I do enjoy that fresh clean feeling once it’s all over. Here is some video of the event:

I forgot to mention this last week, but when the Bulldogs took on the Wright State Raiders a couple Thursday’s ago, I had the opportunity to meet Indianapolis Colts’ Pro-Bowl center, Jeff Saturday who was in attendance at the game.

That really has no significance, other than Jeff is semi-famous and the fact that I wanted to record the event. Plus, he's a cool dude. End of story.

Finally, it’s spring break week at Butler University and while many members of the student body are somewhere south of the Mason-Dixon line, yours truly is staying put. That’s right, no spring break for me, so be sure to check out Blue2TV all week long to check in on my ever-exciting office life.

The World (wide web) Premier of Blue2TV

Well, I must have been a good boy because I did end up getting to go skateboarding on Sunday evening. As you can see by the video, I haven’t quite got the concept down just yet, but I still love it. Like I always say, skate or die, man!

My dad says I would love skateboarding even more if I would just focus and ride the board in a forward motion. He might be right, but I find it extremely gratifying to put the board in my mouth and run around.

For your viewing pleasure, there are a couple more videos of my skateboarding attempts on my YouTube site at www.youtube.com/butlerblue2.

Speaking of viewing pleasure, the webcam is all set up and ready to go, thus I present to you Blue2TV! That’s right, now you can view me live, online, Monday through Friday, during work hours.

Watch me as I sleep, change positions, sleep, move locations, sleep, play with students/staff, sleep, wander off, come back, and sleep some more. It’s riveting lifecasting, for sure.

You can view the live feed here: http://go.butler.edu/lifeatbutler/?pg=4731

I feel like Matthew McConaughey on “Edtv,” or Jim Carrey on “The Truman Show.”

Although, my dad disabled the microphone on the webcam so “Blue2TV” is a silent broadcast. Perhaps it’s more like MTV’s “The Real World” meets Charlie Chaplin.

If we would turn the sound on it might become a real life version of NBC's "The Office"...only without the lucrative contracts and advertising dollars.

They tell me that they are still working out some of the kinks…perfecting camera angles and set up, etc. Also, I think they may be adding another camera within the week so that I am just that much more likely to be on screen when you log on. Great, can a dog get a little privacy?!

Happy viewing!

Blue II

The Graves Touch and Three Days of Fun

First of all, my apologies for not updating the blog until today, however, I've been so busy over the last three days that my little paws haven't had time to navigate the QWERTY. Second, be advised that this is a long post...you young readers might want to break it up in sections. I'll make it easy for you and categorize my recent adventures based on the day.

However, before I begin, I still could use your help in the BISSELL MVP contest. Please take a second and vote for me here: http://www.bissell.com/redirect.asp?page_id=47101&Pet=4900.jpg

Thank you, and now on to my usual canine insights...

Thursday, February 28:

The best thing about this day was the Butler men's basketball game against Wright State at Hinkle Fieldhouse. If you noticed, my friend and videographer Kelly, from The Indianapolis Star was on hand to shoot some additional footage for my video profile which is due on their web site sometime this month.

Also, for as much trash as I talked about Rowdy the Raider, I actually got along great with the guy. I guess it's easy to do when you're winning, but it surprised even me. I don't know if you can call it a "Reagan and Gorbachev" relationship by any means, but it's something anyway.

The Dawgs won the game and as a result, sealed the regular season Horizon League championship...a feat they have done six times out of the last nine seasons! They celebrated by cutting the nets down in Hinkle and posing for pictures with the Dawg Pound and yours truly.

Friday, February 29:

Leap Day! I told my dad that technically we shouldn't have to go to work that day because it was an extra day and that wasn't in our contract, but he made us go anyway. I suppose it was a good thing as we got some things accomplished.

One thing we did was created a YouTube page for me so that I can upload all of my Emmy Award winning home videos for everyone to enjoy. Check it out and save it to your favorites: http://www.youtube.com/butlerblue2.

I will continue to post videos periodically so check back early and often.

Then, the mail arrived with a special package for me, from Amazon.com. It was a web cam. Or as I like to call it a "Blue II Cam," or a "Blue TV." That's right, if my blog and YouTube.com sites weren't enough for all of you devoted fans, soon you'll be able to watch live streaming video of me doing exciting things like sleeping.


My dad got the web cam all hooked up and ready to go and I think we'll use ustream.tv to host the broadcasts, but YouTube just announced that they are venturing into the lifestream hosting realm, so we may end up switching. Unless ustream.tv comes up with a significant multi-thousand dollar contract to keep us. Regardless, I'll let you know when we go live with the video stream.

After all of that, it was KIRBY TIME! Kirby is my best friend and every other week or so, on Fridays, he comes to the office to visit. Named after the late Kirby Puckett of Minnesota Twins fame, Kirby is a one year old Maltese/Shih Tzu mix and belongs to Butler student, Jessica Butler (no relation to Ovid). Although, I look more like Kirby Puckett than Kirby does.



We're kind of like the Walter Matthau and Jack Lemmon of doggy friends, but it works. Kirby likes to bounce around and bit my neck rolls and ears while I like to growl and bark at Kirby and dare him to get the toy that's in my mouth. It's strange, but we like it.




I have some video of Kirby and I up on my YouTube site. In case you are really lazy, I'll include one for your viewing pleasure below. Keep in mind, we are just "play fighting." It looks and sounds a lot worse than it is. No Michael Vick activity ensued.

After playing with Kirby, I was exahausted, so I pretty much slept for the remainder of the work day. But, later that evening it was back to work with an appearance at the HRC for Butler's annual Freshman Skits.

I was asked by Kappa Kappa Gamma to be a part of their skit. Typically I get asked each year to be in somebody's skit and I'm happy to oblige. I will upload a short video of that on my YouTube page.

Saturday, March 1:

After getting to bed late, I was up early and headed back to the HRC for Butler's 16th annual Bulldog Jog. The Butler University Student Foundation and Alumni Association put on the 5K race as a fundraiser for student book scholarships. I'm all for literacy and physical fitness so it seemed worth my time.


In spite of the event's name, you'll see no actual Bulldogs jogging. I would venture to say that my 3.1 mile time would be somewhere north of an hour, so I left the running to everyone else, including my dad. I was mainly on hand for PR.


Dick Wolfsie of WISH-TV CBS Channel 8 was on hand doing live spots from the event so I got a little TV time as well. Again, see my YouTube site for some video of that.

The race went well and participants exceeded the 200 mark, which was great! Race results can be reviewed here: http://www.butler.edu/alumni/index.aspx?pg=4393

After that, it was a quick nap and back to campus for the Butler men's basketball game against Detroit. It was Senior Day at the game as well as Hinkle Fieldhouse's 80th birthday. I even did tricks at center court during a timeout, ran after my bone a couple times, as well as took pictures with the seniors and their families, but perhaps the most noteworthy event was the fact that senior guard, A.J. Graves, actually pet me during the announcement of starting lineups.

You may remember my earlier post regarding A.J. and his desire, or lack thereof, to pet me during starting lineups. Well, he decided that Senior Day and some 120 starts were as good of time as any to show me some love.

The event was so monumental, David Woods of The Indianapolis Star wrote about it in his Butler Notebook as well as his Butler Insider blog, and the folks on the Butler Basketball message board took note too.

In spite of additional cheers from the crowd for finally giving me a pat on the head, A.J. went for only two points, the lowest of his Butler career. Oops. Sorry A.J. At least you tried it once. You don't have to pet me ever again. It's cool . I'm not mad at it.

But, it seems to have worked for other players. Take for instance, Pete Campbell who started, gave me a pre-game rub down, and then went off to make 8 of 12 three pointers. Nicely done, Pete.

So what does all of this mean? Nothing.

The first day of the month also means that the Butler News Flash was sent out to email inboxes world wide. If you don't receive the News Flash, you should. Email me at blue2@butler.edu and I'll make sure we get you signed up.

Okay, I think that covers just about everything for now. Today, I think I'll mainly rest and spend the day at home getting ready for next week and the Horizon League Tournament. I feel a bath in my future, but my mom said that if I was good, then I might be able to get the skateboard out for practice. We'll see.

Finally, the sound of chirping crickets and my lap top cooling fan is deafening...please feel free to use the "comments" feature. I enjoy the feedback and questions.

Blue II