i want to ride the rocket with you

  yes i am watching a Golden Girls re-run on some random cable channel.  Sofia just uttered the line that is the title to this post.  i'm not sure what it means.  and now Dorothy just said: "these naked southern guys sure can dance".  oddity all the way 'round.  not to mention that i am discussing, in some length, the Golden Girls on a (former) sports blog.

today it rained in New Orleans.  the rains are back.  its glorious and the thunder is awesome.

since television and weather have been covered, let's move to sports.

the NBA Draft came and went and despite everybody's strong desire to pick it all apart, it remains speculation.  and it will be that way for quite some time.  perhaps that is why the desire to discuss at great length is there.  for me its hard because i really didn't see too many of the draft picks play in that many games (whether it be college, high school, or over in Europe) (video clips don't do much).  even if i could have seen some limited action its hard to translate that into NBA performance: how a certain player will mesh with a certain organization (from team members to coaches) and how that young man will grow and develop ... or if he will even develop at all.

i get a little quiet come draft time.  especially this year.

weird.

in other semi-sports news, i am feeling a bit of a need (desire?) to get more into hockey.  if only it was on TV!  my most recent worthy sports conversations have revolved around the sport (well that and the always worthy Fantasy Football talk).  of course its the off-season for hockey and if i was mostly unfamiliar with the players in the NBA Draft then one could be sure i was completely out of the loop for the NHL draft.

i'm still not feeling baseball yet.  maybe its the Cubs barely playing .500 ball or all of the continued steroid talk or, simply, i don't feel the passion that most baseball fans exude as they talk of the sport.  things could change as the playoffs near and the summer days grow longer and hotter.  something romantic and lost creeps into me when i think of summer days gone by when all one had was a radio with the baseball game on and a chest full (hopefully) of ice cold canned beer.

NOT QUITE SURE (Open with Y)

i'm like a junky: eyes feasting on anything that may resemble junk entering into my scope.  i'm racing (in my head, but being a junky its more of a stumble) thru darkened streets and alleys as the sun gives way to night (PLAY: Ministry's "Just One Fix").  i'm like a vampire racing the sunrise ... but in reverse because, like i said, its sundown.  maybe i just don't know what time of day it is (the junk and the need for junk has clouded everything).  

honestly i don't know what the "need for junk" is nor what "junk" may be in this half-deluded little parable i pulled out of my ass.  i'm just trying to write and talk about sports / and not talk about sports.  without sports, what is there on the internets?  the better question might be: with sports what is there on the internets?  what is there on cable TV / in the chain movie theaters (i skipped Transformers and i fully plan to skip Transformers 2 ... i'd probably only see them if i was high with Ministry playing loudly on headphones as i sipped at a cool sugar beverage slightly watered down from melted ice).  what is there on the magazine covers (please no "new" celebrities whom only seem to be from reality shows or constructed pop acts sold to pre-teens with nothing but disposable money)?  

the newspapers are disappearing.  Farah Fawcett and Michael Jackson just died today.  the deaths of these celebrities (Ed McMahon too) somehow unites us as Americans.  like the weather or the economy.  like politics or buying a car.  like buying anything really.

i'm not a junk-sick drugged out reverse vampire scouring the streets.  i'm not a pop culture consumerist (at least not by design anyways).  these things just pop up.

maybe a gin martini is in order.  good night.

The Super Unicorn

in this world we celebrate Kobe Bryant.  or rather, his recent accomplishment.  its telling that i start this off with "Kobe Bryant's accomplishment" rather than the accomplishment of the Los Angeles Lakers.  i give a huge hoops shout out to Pau Gasol who, in an alternate universe, wins the Finals MVP.

a congratulations to the Pittsburgh Penguins who won a thrilling Game 7 over the Detroit Red Wings in Detroit.  it was quite a game and, despite my earlier comments, reminds me how spectacular playoff hockey can be.  too bad its hard (or impossible) to find on TV.  

i'm not sure what a "huge hoops shout out" is so please don't ask.

with the Finals over, NBA eyes turn to the coming draft.  after the Clippers take Griffin, it'll be interesting to see how everybody else drafts.  this draft feels pretty wide open.  i think a team in need of a franchise point guard would be wise to select UNC's Lawson.  a lot of the other players i am unsure about (including Rubio and his weird euro contract buyout situation).  i'm curious as to who the New Orleans Hornets select at 21.  they need players.  badly.  both bigs and a 2-guard.  we'll see who's available where when 21 is up.  

the Portland Trailblazers figure to do so much maneuvering that maybe a separate blog could be created just to track their draft history and current moves/positioning.  they need everything and nothing at the same time.

guys i like (based on very little):

Hasheem Thabeet (for defense) (although a #2 pick seems very high for him)

DeJuan Blair

Ty Lawson

and (to be filed under the quick and short guard-scorer category) -

Brandon Jennings, Jeff Teague, Eric Maynor.  i have not seen any of these guys play but i did see some youtube highlights of Jennings so that ... is, um ... something.

this is for Adam:

.

5 Things : Yuck Rant

checking in with ya after an un-planned break.  the NBA finals got me a little bored and sick (i think its actually "sick and bored") of sports hype.  especially since the actual basketball on the court has been not all that good (Kobe Bryant missed 20 shots last night as his team won.  in OT.  and the Lakers still didn't crack 100 points).

i'm trying not to complain.  really.  i'm trying not to complain in sports-blog form.  so, with my usual disregard for form (and punctuation) here are 5 Things:

1) the NBA Finals.  yes i just semi-covered them above but i feel it needs another mention.  and mainly because i can't seem to fully grasp why i'm so un-enthused by these Finals.  yes, i don't particularly care for Kobe Bryant's Lakers.  and i'm not an Orlando fan.  i was gonna pull for the Magic but you never know what you're gonna get one game to the next.  they're like an NCAA tournament team that lives and dies by the 3-ball.  in the early going, when the 3-point shot is workin', they look great.  then they have a game when its brick-city from that distance and they get creamed.  they have so many weapons but seem to also have so many ways to NOT use those weapons (did you see Rashard Lewis had 6 points in last nite's Game 4 loss?).  i guess what i'm trying to say is that both teams look flawed and, well, tired.  its the opposite of what a hoops fan would want from the Championship round.  but not all title fights are guaranteed to be glorious i guess.  LA could wrap this thing up with Kobe shooting 30% from the field.  or Odom scoring 5 points.  or Derek Fisher missing all of his shots until the final 10 seconds.  who knows?  both teams have shown an unusual penchant for inconsistent play.

let me just throw in that i think the refs have too much control.  i know, i know - everybody hates the NBA officiating (maybe even the refs themselves) but there seems to be no passion, no pushing, everybody WAY too quick to freak out about "things escalating" and nobody sure (players especially) when a Technical Foul, Flagrant Foul, Flagrant 2, or some other weird horse shit is gonna come out of a ref's whistle.  it all just adds to the inconsistent nature of these Finals.  let's just finalize things and move on to the draft and next year. 

signed, not a Lakers-Magic Finals Fan.

2) after that long rant at least we have the Stanley Cup Game 7 on tonite!  Detroit versus Pittsburgh!  and you know what?  despite being a sports fan and even attending a few NHL games in the past few years ... i don't really care.  sorry!  i feel a bit bad but NONE of these hockey playoffs have been on TV (well, maybe Game 5 was on TV or something) but none of the earlier rounds.  i even have cable TV and i can't find hockey.  so screw it.  i'd like to tune in to see who wins but i have no interest in seeing playoff hockey for virtually the first time just as it is ending.  plus if Detroit wins, and the Lakers win, then does that mean the Yankees will win the World Series?  the Pittsburgh Steelers already won the Super Bowl.  don't tell me that Michael Jordan is somehow involved in these NBA Finals too.

3) the UFC has an event tomorrow night from Germany (UFC 99).  and while the fight card has no titles at stake it does feature some interesting bouts.  too bad you can't see it unless you fork over 50 bucks.  too rich for my blood.  and is it me or do Wanderlei Silva and Rich Franklin both look a little rugged (beat up) these days?  man, i'm glad i'm not a fighter.  i do love the sport but i also like my bones not to break and my nose not to get crumpled.  i just went to the dentist yesterday and i'm not ready for any more pain.

4) baseball is happening (its true!).  but the Cubs are mired in another losing streak.  they sit at .500 and in 4th place in their division.  the time is coming when this is who the Cubs are this year and blame can't be put on "a slow start".  also we can't lose to Houston.

[photo for break in between #4 and #5 (rather, complaint #4 and complaint #5)]:

    

apparently there are two famous Jay Cutlers (i discovered during a google image search).  guess which one plays football?

yep, its the rapscallion in the cap!

5) i get ESPN magazine as a gift from my brother (thanks Adam) but i can't get over the "Buy Covers @ ESPNtheMag.com/covers".  really?  these covers are for sale?  or these?  or this one?  yuck.

this is not like classic Sports Illustrated.  that shit was gold.

COMING SOON: more UFC fight talk, less whining and, fittingly enough, less Jay Cutler.