Wednesday 5/4/22
It'd be nice to be able to breathe again. Nasal passages are so blocked that when I do the nasal rinse, the water won't go through. Third day in a row I've had bits of paper towel stuff up my nose. The C-Dawg has been sexier.
My to-do list is 300 items long--that is not an exaggeration--and I am not cutting into it.
But I did write an op-ed this morning that will wreck everyone who reads it and really could go viral, despite everything against me, if someone runs it on Sunday. It's a Mother's Day piece, and I should have thought of this idea years ago, but I didn't. It just came to me in this flash today, and I had the entire thing written in five minutes. It's an actual masterpiece, which is something that I think is true for all of the op-eds, but it's not something I ever say about them, but I'm saying it with this one. I've had three official mothers in my life. I don't mean like an aunt who was mother-like. I mean three actual mothers. The piece is called "My real mom." I don't see how a person could read it and not cry. It's beautiful. This needs to come out.
Here is last night's Downtown, with me sounding stuffed up, but it's still really good. Topics covered: Pink Floyd, M.R. James, The Twilight Zone, Bill Belichick, lemon water, Ted Williams, pneumonia, Nolan Ryan, the Who, Led Zeppelin, Mickey Mantle, the Ground Round, Eeyore, hockey, the torn fabric of society.
I keep listening to that Vaccines' EP.
Celtics came out and handled the Bucks last night. Never in doubt. Now to take a game in Milwaukee. Hard but doable. They have to.
Missed the Rangers-Penguins 3OT game last night. Would've liked to have seen that. Love that kind of thing. The longer the better.
Not bullish about the Bruins. Something is wrong with this team, and I have an idea what it is. Bergeron and Marchand were awful in Game 1. Marchand is not the same player this year, and I think that has less to do with an erosion in skills as it does a lack of focus. He's not fully mentally committed. He was a no-show in this game, a complete non-factor, and Bergeron, I saw, had only played eleven minutes through two periods. Here's what I think the issue is: Bergeron is done with the Bruins. They think his play has dropped off. It's discussed like something that is bound to happen that he won't be back next year. That shadow has lurked throughout the season. This is strange, because he's been with the team for nearly twenty years. When do you see a guy with a team that long--let alone in a place such as Boston, a huge sports hub--get discarded or move on and end up somewhere else? He's nowhere near at their level, but years-wise, Bergeron is like Ted Williams or Yaz. Actually, the best comp might be Dwight Evans. I think Evans was the better player, but remember, he had that year with the Orioles. Or you don't remember. Most don't. Marchand and Bergeron are close in real life. And I think this has affected Marchand. Which is unprofessional, but I believe he's that way with his buddies. He--and Bergeron--were loyal to Rask to the detriment of the team. And then there's the goaltender situation. What'd I'd say is this: you can win the Cup if you use two goalies. But you can't win the Cup with a platoon system. The Bruins never bothered to establish a number one guy in the regular season. They had the pair trade off games. No rhythm was established, neither guy got to prove himself as the guy. I'm not sure they have a number one goalie. I thought Swayman backslid a little during the year, and Ullmark got somewhat better, plus he's the veteran, so I bet that's their thinking, but you gave up 5 goals. Not saying they were mostly his fault, but that's 4 GA for Ullmark in a single game. I'd say you then have to go with the other guy, but they're not. Okay. If you lose tonight, though, Swayman starts in Boston, and the whole thing just feels unstable to me. You want stability in the playoffs.
I think Colorado can win the Cup. They'd be my pick. Tampa has so much talent, but they're going to be busy with the Leafs.