Brain Playlist: Shuffle

I sure had fun playing basketball this evening. Usually there are way too many people there, everybody signs their name on a list, and the next 5 on the list play the winners. Sometimes your team is 2, 3 teams down the list. You can seriously wait 45 minutes just to play, and if your team sucks, you're done in 10 minutes. Add to that that way too many people thing they're trying out for the friggin' Bulls, and nobody ever just misses a shot, or commits a turnover, it's always a foul. Anyway, tonight I got with a solid group of 3 guys and a girl, and we had the right mix of height, shooters, and ball handlers. Nobody tried to be Michael Jordan, people were friendly to one another, and we had a great time. Held court for 3 games before I had to leave. And I didn't play half bad. Nice.

15 years later and I still wear an aircast on my right ankle when I play ball. Maybe I'm just afraid to play without it. The way my ankle feels right now, though, I doubt it. I'm a wuss.

Do Germans say "Owie"? These two kids were running around when I was leaving the gym - very cute - and they fell down. The girl, very small, screeched "owie!" before the mom came over and said, "zich en un einbritsen!" or something like it. Huh.

I don't follow this sort of thing, except for what a person can't help but see in the papers (which I generally read online), and I think America's obsession with celebrity is the hallmark of a bored civilization, but - is Britney Spears trying to whore herself up as much as she can when she leaves the house? Or trailer-trash herself up on opposite days? It's like this girl has nobody around her saying, "Honey, you can't wear that." Doesn't this girl have a mother? I wonder if, when you reach a certain level of celebrity and thusly lose your damn mind, you either attract the wrong people or repel the right people so nobody around you is the kind of friend that can say, "Dude. You look like hell. I love you, but clean it up."

I'm thinking seriously of getting a low-budget mountain bike for some winter riding, so I don't have to do all my rides for the next 2 months on a trainer. Plus I'd like to mountain bike a little more, I think. It would be fun to learn a whole new sport, I think. I was in the shop today asking dude the most basic of questions, just trying to educate myself about the mountain bike. I think next year I'll update Ol' Blue with a new incarnation as well. I'll keep you posted on that. If anybody has any insights or advice, I'm interested.

I sure do love my job.

Amy and I are re-watching The Sopranos before the final episodes in April. We just started Season 4. You have to be kidding me with how good this show is. That and Deadwood. I don't think they've ever made such entertaining television.

I wonder if Floyd's guilty or not. And Tyler Hamilton. He's off suspension now, Tyler. He's with some tiny little pro team that may or may not get invited to some of the larger races, certainly not the Tour de France. You want to hope these guys are just getting a raw deal. And if so, how utterly, criminally sad. And if not, if they did dope up, well. How utterly and criminally sad.

My dog Jack rules. I know you know this. Never hurts to say it.