The Swartz Report: Royals, Chiefs, And The Greatest Run of My Life!

Post written by Donald Swartz, President and Principal at Swartz + Associates, Inc. | Lover of Chiefs, Royals and golf | Avid “Cruiser” | Poker Enthusiast

In the immortal words of the recently deceased Yogi Berra, “It’s like Déjà vu all over again”. That certainly describes the feeling as we watched the Royals defeat Houston in a dramatic five game series. Didn’t we just experience this craziness last year? Surely, the 2014 Wild Card game was the “greatest game we’ve ever seen”…. until it wasn’t.

Fast forward to Game 4 of this year’s ALDS in Houston. Almost an identical situation; down four runs in the eighth inning and elimination seemed imminent. With a statistical probability of less than 3% chance of winning in either situation, somehow the Royals were able to stave off elimination and live to play another day.

If ever Yogi Berra’s quote was attributable to a situation, Kansas City fans would be hard pressed to find a more accurate representation. So the run continues…..

Speaking runs, if you’ve read my LinkedIn profile, I leave no question as to my passion for sports, particularly when it comes to the Chiefs and Royals. As a fan, I’ve been on a pretty good run…. Chiefs vs Packers on Monday night at Lambeau Field and Games 2 and 5 of the Royals vs Astros series. Now add to the fact that soon we’ll be watching my alma mater play Northwestern in Chicago too.

Oh, and let’s not forget that the Chicago Cubs (long my favorite team in the world, but unfortunately relegated to not-so-close 2^nd favorite baseball team) will be playing in the NLCS. And although they will be playing on the road, I think Chicago would be a pretty great place to be right now too.

But the greatest run of all? 

Easy answer…25 years of marriage to Karen Glickstein, which we will be celebrating next month. (More on that next month!) Stay with me on this as there are common threads. Several people know the story so there’s no reason to bore you with details, however…

I met my wife because of the Chicago Cubs. I met my wife because of Northwestern. And I met my wife because of scotch. 

Okay, the scotch component isn’t really relevant to this, but what the heck, it played an important role in our introduction. If only the Cubs and the Royals can meet in the World Series concluding the week before our 25^th Anniversary – that would truly be something.

While this appears to be all fun and games, I have a passion for work as well…and there’s been a lot going on.

Recently I attended oral arguments at the Supreme Court in the State of Iowa for a client we’ve been representing for several years.

This case represents the second time I’ve been fortunate enough to have worked with a client where their property tax issue has reached the Supreme Court in Iowa. Each client and each case is unique with complex issues.

The first case, almost twenty years ago, focused on the valuation of data processing equipment for property tax purposes. The 2^nd case  just heard concerns the valuation of a single tenant, owner occupied building.

Is highest and best use of a property its current use and is current use similar to or different than value in exchange? I find these issues and the questions of the Court fascinating and while I was simply there to watch the proceedings, I found the questions of law and the maneuvering of the attorneys to be incredible.

Thank you again for spending a few minutes of your day with me. As always, I appreciate your comments and feedback – which appears to be growing each month 🙂 And, of course, if we can be of assistance on property tax or equipment valuation matters, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me at (913) 766-8761 or .