Until last week, I was excited about watching the Boston Celtics defend their NBA title. But then I learned that the ailing Kevin Garnett will likely miss the NBA playoffs. (In fact, this photograph of KG — click here and scroll down — pretty much sums everything up.) “Good thing it’s baseball season,” I thought. But then the Red Sox got off to a slow start, winning two games and losing six, and I became strangely uninterested in baseball. I thought I was alone, but then I met up with the New England Sports Fan Friend on Friday night.
“I’m totally apathetic,” the New England Sports Fan Friend confessed, while we were hanging out at the Hill Street in Albany. “The Celtics cannot win it all. They’re done. And the Red Sox — I know it’s early, but it feels like 2006. Like a lost year.” Then he shocked me by suggesting we skip the NBA playoffs, and watch the NHL playoffs, instead. “This year is all about the Bruins,” he proclaimed. Now, I never watch professional hockey, but this seemed like a brilliant idea. It’s not that I don’t like hockey. I do. It’s just that I don’t know anybody who pays any attention to it, and so I’ve never really paid much attention to it, either. So if the New England Sports Fan Friend wants to watch hockey, well, I can get into hockey. Baseball, basketball ... yup, hockey is clearly where it’s at. At least, that was my thinking when I was drinking beer and hanging out with the New England Sports Fan Friend at the Hill Street.
Then I went home and checked the score of the Red Sox-Orioles game, and remembered why I love baseball. When I’d gotten home from work, the score was 7-0, Orioles, in the second inning. A total disaster, in other words. But I reminded myself that if a team is in a big hole early on, there’s plenty of time to catch up. So I washed some dishes, and when I checked the game again, the score was 7-4. When I got to the Hill Street, it was 7-5, and when I got home, it was 10-8, Red Sox. Now, that’s why you watch sports. Not because you expect to win a championship every year. But because it’s fun, and unpredictable and wildly entertaining. So, yay! It’s baseball season! I’m glad it’s here. Now let’s watch some games.
As for the Celtics, I also plan to keep watching them, even though their chances of repeating are basically non-existent. But let’s be honest: Even with a healthy Kevin Garnett, a trip to the NBA finals wasn’t exactly guaranteed. The Celtics were always going to have a difficult time getting past the Cleveland Cavaliers, especially without home court advantage. LeBron James has been amazing this season, and he’s lead the Cavs to an intimidating 39-2 record at home. But after a Game One first round loss at home to the upstart Chicago Bulls (yes, Derrick Rose is the real deal), I’d say the Celtics are going to struggle to reach the second round. My NBA finals prediction: Lakers vs. Cavs, with the Cavs winning in seven games.
GETTING STOPPED BY THE POLICE ... AGAIN
I recently wrote about getting stopped by the police in Bennington, Vt., and various other places; you can find that post here. Anyway, I was stopped again on Saturday night in Saratoga County, just south of Greenfield, I think. As usual, I assumed I was speeding. But no. “What happened to your front license plate?” the cop asked. “Oh, yeah,” I said. “It’s missing.”
The fact is, I’ve never actually had a front license plate. I moved to New York more than eight years ago, and the DMV only gave me one plate. Because we only needed one in Alabama, it took me a while to notice that almost every New York vehicle has two plates. And once I noticed, I didn’t have the energy to deal with the DMV again. So I didn’t. In any case, I felt like I should give this cop some kind of prize, for being the first person besides my mother to notice my missing front plate. “Where are you coming from?” he asked. I told him. “Where are you going?” I told him. He asked whether my license had ever been suspended, and whether I’d ever been on probation. I said I hadn’t. I kept waiting for the cop to notice that I also have a missing sideview mirror. But he didn’t. Instead he let me go. The end.
I do think it’s time to get a front license plate. I always swore I’d get one if the police pulled me over because of my missing plate, and although it took almost a decade, they finally caught up with me.
MILLENNIALS AND GEN XERS
A few months back I wrote about being a proud Gen Xer. (You can find that post here.) Niskayuna native and Bryn Mawr student Elizabeth Held, who blogs for the Gazette, has written a response, of sorts, which you can find here.
Got a comment? Add one below, or e-mail me at sfoss@dailygazette.net.
