saturday shorts

Its been a busy couple weeks, so I apologize for the lack of posting. Between real life stuff blowing up, work eating up my time, and my continuing four month battle against the never ending head cold from hell, I just haven’t been able to post.

So, a quick Saturday morning ramble! That should make up for it …

* The gold medal hockey game was epic. I literally could not get up off the couch while the game was underway. First, let me thank profusely NBC and more specifically its sponsors, for airing the in-game action commercial free. I think that’s what made the game even better than it already was – no delay in the action. No stoppage of play. Just continuous flow.

Secondly, how sweet was Ryan Parise’s game tying goal? You know it’s a unifying moment when I stand up and fist pump … and across the hall, my neighbor is screaming, and next door, I hear the other neighbor pounding his coffee table in joy.

Third, the Sidney Crosby winner. Its not often I’m not upset when the team I’m openly rooting for loses. I’ve detailed in the past how certain defeats, I will never be able to get over (usually those involve a certain blue-and-orange clad squad from denver). But seeing the eruption of emotion at Canada Hockey Place when Crosby won it, I wasn’t even upset. I just felt … I don’t know, grateful? Happy to have just been able to watch this thing unfold?

Finally, the gold medal ceremony. Again, I’m a sucker for folks who live in the moment. That was bone-chilling awesome. 18,000 plus folks singing “O Canada”, as a nation revels in (arguably) its greatest athletic achievement. Chuck Klosterman kind of hit on this in the BS Report this week, but he’s dead on accurate – it sucks that we don’t have a unifying national team like that in this country. I mean, if we’d won that game, we’d feel good as a nation for what, a week? Two weeks? And come 2014 in Suchi, we probably would be asking “wait, who’s Ryan Miller?” Congrats to Canada.

* The closing ceremonies. I won’t say anything other than screw NBC for cutting away for 90 freaking minutes to air a crappy new “reality” show, local news, and TMZ.

* The BuKCs host the LeBrons tonight. I know its one regular season game among 82. I know the BuKCs are basically a lock for the postseason at this point, and are just playing for seeding (ideally, the five, and a first round matchup against the reeling Celtics). But to me, this is a statement game. The BuKCs are on fire lately, winners of 8 of 9, fresh off a sweep of the Wizards. The only loss in the last three weeks was an overtime loss at Atlanta, nothing to be ashamed about. (Dear God, I never thought I’d type those words – there’s no shame in losing to the Hawks. I guess I should start staring at the sky expecting the Second Coming any moment now).

But every once in a while, an opportunity game presents itself. A chance to see just how good you really are. This is one of those deals for the BuKCs. A chance to beat the best, on your home court, in the push for the playoffs. It’s a statement game. Here’s hoping the BuKCs take care of business.

* KU! MU! 1pm today! At Allen Field House East! Sorry, at The Plaige! OK, ok, at Norm Stewart Center! Oh, that’s right, MU didn’t even have the decency to name their not-quite-sold-out-every-night facility after the man who put them on the map, because why do that when you can name it after a word thief in SoCal?

My prediction: MU 86, KU 84. I know all the talk in town this week is “man, I want a third KU / KSU matchup next Saturday”. Well, I don’t. I want a third KU / MU matchup. These two teams can never play enough. There’s “rivalry”, like with our farm-loving friends from Manhattan. Then there’s rivalry. Like with our cousin-loving friends from Columbia. The more KU / MU match up, the better off we all are.

* Jon Scheyer Senior Night! ESPNU has been replaying classic Duke / UNC games all morning. College GameDay live from Cameron in a little bit. Sadly, UNC’s upset win over Wake Forest ensures they will finish at worst 16-16, guaranteeing a NIT bid for them.

What I’d like to see tonight? Easy. Scheyer, early and often, just draining 3s. The Cameron Crazies blowing the roof off the joint with taunts, chants, and cheering, as Duke goes up something like 45-17 at the half, and cruises to a 105-52 victory. (Yes, I want them to double up the score on the Rat Bastard. Run! It! Up! Show no class Coach K! Show no mercy!)

What I expect to see tonight? I have a bad, bad, bad feeling about this game. I think this is going to be a “Steve has no finger nails left” from stress contest. A “Dusty is chucking sh*t at the television in frustration” contest. Duke 82, UNC 81, on a late Scheyer jumper. For some reason, I think UNC shows up and plays like they should have all season tonight. God bless it, I pray I’m wrong.

* “Lost”! If you don’t watch the show … at this point, no sense in trying to convert you. If you do watch and haven’t seen this week’s episode, feel free to skip this section. Only 12 hours and 11 episodes of television’s finest show to go. Sad. Tragic. Here’s my thoughts on this week’s Sayid centric episode:

The last five minutes were the most action packed, jaw dropping, “holy f*cking sh*t” five minutes I think the show has delivered in years. You go from the calm, revealing Sayid / Dogan conversation … to all of a sudden, a double homicide, Sayid standing on the steps to the pool with the blood dripping off the knife, and Ben rushing the room as Smokey is wreaking havoc … and Ben is scared sh*tless by Sayid. Then, the final moments, as Sayid and Crazy Claire walk out to join Fake Locke … and Kate is with them.

One thing though that I caught, or at least I think I caught – everyone has been focused on Dogan’s comment to Sayid that “you have to stab (Fake Locke) BEFORE he says a word. Once he talks, he’s won”. Fake Locke said “Hello, Sayid” right before Sayid stabbed him. Go figure, the stab didn’t work. And everyone now is like “well, Dogan lied, he knew Fake Locke couldn’t be killed and hoped that he’d kill Sayid”.

My response was the exact opposite. I think Dogan was being truthful. So go back and watch that final scene again – Fake Locke does not say ONE word to Kate. Just an expression. So if Dogan is correct, that you can take Fake Locke out before he speaks, is Kate still a candidate to end his reign of good / evil? (I still don’t think Fake Locke is “evil incarnate”, as Dogan put it).

For the first time this season, I cared more (and liked more) the on-Island action more than the flash sideways action. Not that the flash sideways wasn’t interesting – it was. But for the first time this year, I actually cared about what was going on, on the Island. Well, that’s not fair – I was intrigued with the Cave, with the Lighthouse, and with Sawyer’s drunken remembrance of Juliet. But for the first time, the Island stuff drew me in. Finally, we’re getting a point and a purpose to the on-Island stuff.

* I see si.com rated the MLB GM’s, and our guy came in dead last. In a related development, single game tickets just went on sale this morning, and I am not within 4 miles of a Ticketmaster location right now. I have zero, zip, nada, absolutely no interest in this upcoming baseball season. It’s a very strange feeling. Usually I’m counting down the minutes to baseball season. Now? The first game I attend might be my cousin’s birthday bash in Milwaukee in the middle of June.

(OK, I know, I’ll at least go for a tailgate or five in May and early June. I am ALWAYS up for a day spent in 85 degree sunshine, especially when vodka tonics, beer pong, losing yet again to DJ at washers, and/or ladder toss are involved. But actually enter the stadium? That might be mid-June. Sad, but true).

* I just saw a commercial for sugardaddie.com. Normally I’m not one to overreact to our allegedly crumbling society, because I don’t think anything is occurring today that didn’t occur 500 years ago. The only difference is in media coverage of events. But wow. Sugardaddie.com. I hope that’s some kind of a new cultural rock bottom.

* Its gonna be 60 here in KC today. Pushing 60 tomorrow. And yet, I plan to spend both days watching college hoops inside. For the first time in a long time, I really, really, really miss the deck …