Finally, there's a third choice. Me.

Breaking news. I'm going to fix the country myself. Donations welcome.

Kings Flashback - Kings at Golden State

Woah. Should have called that last entry "Where the Hell is MIKE?" Been a busy couple of weeks, and I'm behind on just about everything, so still trying to catch up. As this is one of the things I'm behind on, yet I lack time for fresh new bloggin', thought we'd try another one of the Kings game writeups I did back in the 2000 season. When last we left our Kings, they had beaten up the Golden State Warriors AND taken their lunch money at Arco Arena. The game that followed was a bus trip toward the Bay, where the Kings went to face a Warriors team that was looking for some redemption...and some payback.

Kings at Golden State
11/10/00

Did I not tell you we were in for a better game this time?

Holy cow! This is the part where I start to be careful what I wish for! I was right in believing that after such a humiliating loss at Arco last time, the Warriors were going to come back pissed and vengeful, anxious to remind their fans that they’re an actual force this year, not a high school team with a bigger budget.

This was a monster game, and everything I love to see out of a good, hard-fought basketball matchup with two hungry teams duking it out. The previous win was all about the fastbreaks and the longball. This one was physical, down in paint, fighting for every inch, every rebound, every force to the hoop. Big-time, exciting NBA action, and both teams had a lot to be proud of.

It was neck and neck most of the way, with a good lead by the Kings in the first half getting eaten up by Warrior wrath and determination. There was no lollygagging for Oaktown this time, and I got my chance to see some of these guys shine. Jamison played 51 minutes and tied his career high of 37 points. Fortson, the rebounding NBA sensation, pulled out his 5^th straight double-double, nailing 16 points and 17 boards. Hughes wanted some payback after his performance two nights before, and got it with 5 rebounds, 8 assists (!) and 12 points. Vinnie only put up two points, but fed the masses with 5 assists to keep his team in the game. Mills was a monster King-killer with 18 mad points. These guys gave it their all, and kept their half of the arena (the half that wasn’t Kings fans driving the 90 minutes from the capital) cheering. It was war, and despite myself, I was loving every minute of it. Hey, blowouts are nice and all once a while, but if you’re really a basketball fan, you want to see a game, not a slaughter. And game, we got.

And the pudding wherein the proof lied (or is that “lay”)? Overtime. The Kings held a 4-point lead in the final moments of regulation, and lost it thanks to a Hughes jumper and two free-throws from Del Negro. With 9.5 seconds left, Webber tried a 17-foot jumper that went in and out, and it was time for O.T. And time, thankfully, for the Kings to seal the deal. Mostly due to Webber, who scored 35 in the game, 10 of which were in O.T. Webb, by the way, had career highs in free-throws attempted (23) and made (17). This was his night, and the former Warrior shined in the face of an always hostile Oakland crowd (when are people going to let the time-out thing go? Get over it, people! He was in college! Find a new taunt, for crying out loud!). Not only 35 points for Webb, but 16 rebounds and 6 assists.

It was big night for just about everyone on the Kings, and especially for J-Will, who was back in full showtime style with 20 points and 8 assists, living up to his press in high fashion. Webb and Jason were the mad team, making it all happen in overtime (Chris’s 6 in a row put us up 105-101 with 1:33 left, and the crazy J-Will pass that followed right after gave Chris another pair to seal the deal). Peja was sort of hit or miss, putting up 16 points (and when we call that hit or miss, let’s remember some players wait their whole careers to see 16 points in one game), and Vlade was in the ZONE with 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 13 points and a steal. Did someone say 13 points? So, too, did the in-the-groove Doug Christie score, getting his stroke back in style and working that crazy “D” with 3 steals. Nick got 14 whole minutes, but only managed a couple of points and 1 board. Pollard wasn’t pulling down as many boards this time around, but got hot on the offense, plugging in 6 points (and, as always, stood tall and worked the defense under the hoop). Jon Barry gave us 5 points and a couple of those surgical rebounds that drop the jaw. Not too big a night for Bobby Jackson (but, hey, it was J-Will’s show tonight anyway)…no points, but some rebounding, aggressive defensive, and pair of assists, still doing his part for the crew. Obviously there was a LOT of Webber Time tonight, so only 5 brief minutes of play for Lawrence, but he dropped a bucket with the time he got. And we got some rook! Turkoglu got 3 whole minutes, and used it to slam down a MONSTER jam so heavy that he almost injured himself coming down (nearly face-first onto the oak). I love seeing this kid play! He’s really making the most of his short minutes, and I know Rick’s keeping an eye on him, and we’ll be seeing more out of him as the season moves along (and as the unavoidable injuries start to happen). Any team can look good when you’re 30 points ahead—it’s how your team looks when it’s anyone’s game from buzzer to buzzer that really makes the difference. The Kings stepped up and made it happen tonight, sinking the Warriors in post-reg 114-107. Thanks again, Mr. Webber. Funniest part of the night was Webber getting fouled half-court with the clock about to expire. There was really no reason for it. But Webb grinned and shrugged, with a look that said “Hey, I’ll take a couple more points.” And that’s just what he got, making that 35 happen…and making the Oakland fans hate him even more. Got to love that.

This was one great game of basketball, and I felt this compulsion to give the Warriors and very sincere thanks for a fantastic game. Mock them if you want (most of the NBA does), but this a team with a lot of talent, playing with some key injuries right now (they played tonight without Sura, Mullin, Cummings, or the last-game-injured Mookie), and if they can get healthy and get some breaks in the months to come, they could get a lot of respect this year. They got a lot from me tonight, truly playing like Warriors.

Where the Hell is Matt?

You may or may not have heard of this. I did, on the news, a month or so back. I finally got around to finding and watching the video. I was going to embed it here, but that would only give you the low quality one. What I suggest is that you go to the video:

Where the Hell is Matt?

...and immediately click on the "watch in high quality" option beneath it. It makes a big difference.

14 months. 42 countries. Such a simple, silly idea. But in doing it, one man created something unexpectedly extraordinary. What seemed so goofy at first ended up giving me chills by the end. Why? Because somehow, he managed, in this little video, to shrink the world in a way I've seen no one else accomplish, and to show in such a basic, universal way how, no matter where we are, we're not all so different as we'd like to think. For just a moment there I really felt part of it all, and felt like maybe, just maybe, there might be a chance for humanity after all. Is it strange that something like this could make me feel so connected to my world, and bring up so many inexplicable emotions? Maybe not so strange after all. Maybe, in the end, all we really need to do is shut up and dance.

Thanks, Matt.

You WISH you had Donny Osmond's moves

Never actually tried embedding a YouTube video before, so thought I'd experiment with this one. This is for the Weird Al song "White and Nerdy". There's a few memorable appearance of Donny Osmond in it. But when you dig a little deeper, you can find this take of the video, which all totally Donny's stuff. You know, I never thought I'd say these words in my life, but Donny Osmond kicks ASS. Rock on, my Mormon brutha. Rock on.

The Smile That's Just For You

Every man knows how special that moment is when the right girl smiles at you. Not someone you know, but just a beautiful stranger, someone whose appearance into your world is a complete surprise. Suddenly, she's just there, and you generally notice her first, and if the stars are lining up just right, she notices you, too. And she smiles. Usually you never say a word, and you never see her again. But you find that you always remember that smile. It's something you cherish, and it warms you and gives you a little private smile every time you remember it. It's one of those quiet, perfect moments that creep into your life and remind you that each day holds the chance for little surprises that shouldn't mean so much to you, but do.

If the girl in question is famous, this can mean so much more.

It was Comic-Con, San Diego, the summer of 2003. We'd gotten word that there was a new Battlestar Galactica series coming out, and we were all pretty curious about what they were going to do with it. Was it going to be cheesy as the original, or were they going to take it seriously? Most of us know the answer to that now (serious? It's freaking heartbreaking!), but then, we didn't know a thing about this new show, or this new cast, but we had all heard the most shocking news of its reincarnation. Starbuck was a CHICK?

Didn't quite know what to make of that, but figured it was worth going to the Galactica panel at the Con to check out the details. So there I was, with a few friends, sitting in the front row at this panel (this was back when you could still get into the front row at a panel at Comic-Con without camping outside the night before). Some of the new cast came up on stage. Can't remember if Edward James Olmos showed that first year, but I know I was pretty excited about that. But one of the ones who did show was Katie Sackhoff, who would be playing the gender-bent Starbuck. If you know the show, you know what a tough-as-nails character she is, but in the first panel, she, this really adorable blonde, showed up in a very girly (and very nice) dress. I was pretty captivated. And as the panel got going, between listening to the news, I found my eyes kept going back to her, as her face was more than a little magnetic.

I happened to have my eyes on that face when her eyes wandered a bit - and connected with mine. Our gazes met. And suddenly, she gave me this smile. This dazzling, amazing smile. It was a smile coupled with this double-eye scrunch (kind of like a double wink) that was painfully cute. My heart stopped. And for once, not for medical reasons. It was one of the most wonderful smiles I'd ever gotten. It didn't last long, but just for that moment, in that room filled with a couple thousand people, I had this connection with her, with this beautiful woman that, soon, would become very famous in geek circles, and be the subject of endless web page photo galleries (and creative Photoshopping). I knew then that, for better or worse, I would DEFINITELY be watching that show. Turns out it was for the better, so thankfully I didn't have to spend the next several years sitting through some crappy show just to watch the girl who had given me that simple, unexpected gift. The gift of one smile.

Cut to Hollywood, September of 2005. Thanks to being a famous comic writer (ahem), I had gotten a connection that got me tickets to one of the greatest events of my life (kind of sad, when you say that out loud) - the Hollywood world premiere of "Serenity", Joss Whedon's motion picture continuation of the much-loved (and much-canceled) series "Firefly". I took my friend Tony, hands-down the biggest Firefly fan of all of us, with me. The premiere was getting ready to start, and we were going to be walking the red carpet into the theater, right along with the stars. As we couldn't take cameras in, Tony had run back to a locker we had gotten there at Universal and was putting ours in there before we went in. So I was sitting there waiting for him to return, watching all the goings on from my spot at the start of the carpet, seeing the crowds cheering the passing stars, watching the press get their shots and ask their questions. Maybe to check again for Tony, I suddenly turned to my left. And I found myself (being in a wheelchair and all) looking right at the back of a pair of jeans. Looking up, I quickly realized, with some shock, that I was sitting right next to Amy Acker. Every guy in my circle was totally in love with this actress, the one who played "Fred" on the Whedon show "Angel". This was one of the many surreal moments of the night. I was right next to Fred! And her jeans!

Right about this moment, Tony came walking up. As he did, he was approaching Amy. Amy turned her head and caught his eye. Tony (his face, thankfully, not matching the almost certain panic in his heart) just smiled and simply, and quietly, said "Hi". Amy smiled her wonderful, warm smile, the one that lights up her whole (perfect) face, and said "Hi" back to him.

That's a smile, and a "Hi", that Tony will take to his grave.

(I really hope Tony's wife doesn't read my blog).

Cut to one week ago (to be exact, one week and one hour ago, as of right this moment), back to San Diego, and to Comic-Con. My friend Russ and I were sitting in a filled-to-capacity room, sitting on the aisle, waiting for the official first crowd showing of the Joss Whedon masterpiece "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog" to start (which you should have already seen if you've been reading my blog. If not, you need to accept the shame and go sign up for a Dale Carnegie course or something and get your life straightened out). Joss, the other writers and the cast had all shown up to watch it with us, and the crowd went wild as they entered from the front, and as Joss and Neil Patrick Harris (suit up!!) said a couple of quick words. Then came the hurry to get it started, and Joss and entourage came walking back toward us to go take their seats in the back of the room. The writers came first, and with them came Felicia Day, the actress who plays Penny in "Dr. Horrible" - a musical that both Russ and I had watched on the web several times before coming to the Con.

Did I mention Russ's weakness for redheads?

Russ was already crazy about her, and suddenly, there she was, walking our way. People were snapping some pics, and being no fool, Russ stood up with his camera to get a shot as well. A few flashes were going off here and there, getting shots of Felicia from this angle or that. But as Russ went to take his, Felicia turned, looked right into his camera, and smiled. See the photo above. Russ became the one of us with one of these stories who has actual evidence that he didn't make his tale up. Lots of people, again, taking shots. But that one particular smile? That was just for him.

When those moments happen with women that are part of the "real" world, there are some mixed feelings. Sure, you enjoyed the moment, but you might be left with lingering regrets. What if she was the one? Why didn't I say something? What if we were meant to be together, and I let her slip away? This is what makes the celebrity moments so pure. You KNOW for a fact nothing was going to happen. There's no "what if" in play. Therefore, no pressure. There's nothing left but a frozen moment of pure and unexpected bliss, and the knowledge that though countless thousands of men long to be in the same room with her, you were the one that was there with her, and, just for a moment, connected with her. Sure, it's a connection that she surely forgot about a quarter of a second later, but you? You get to see her on TV, in movies, in magazines, and know that for that one sliver of time, she had a smile with your name on it...even if she never knew your name. And you get to remember that every time she pops up on "E!" or accepts an award or shows up in a rerun. You get to remember that smile that was just for you.

In the interest of full disclosure, I should point out that this essay sounded less sad in my head...