Life in Hollywood, below-the-line

Life in Hollywood, below-the-line
Work gloves at the end of the 2006/2007 television season (photo by Richard Blair)

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Rainy Daze






















Yes Virginia, it really does rain in LA. But not for long...



I’m not what you’d call a basketball fan. Although I’ve got nothing against the game itself -- which is doubtless a fine way to burn calories, improve one’s hand-eye coordination, and get an excellent cardio workout all at once – for some reason it has never held my interest. As a kid, of course, I couldn’t sink a basket while standing three feet from the net – that might have something to do with this strange aversion of mine, or maybe it’s just one of those things.

You say puh-tay-toe, I say pah-tah-toe, let's call the whole thing off.

But given that I have no interest in playing basketball, imagine how little I care about watching others play it, especially on TV. I can watch a few minutes of a college or pro game, but that’s about it. Before long my attention has wandered, and I find myself seized with a sudden urge to wash the dishes, pay the bills, or deliver a swift kick to the midsection of my landlord’s eternally barking dog.

Not that I’ve ever actually kicked that dog, mind you. Only in my mind...

I fully understand that in our sports-crazed society, failing to embrace the All American game of basketball is tantamount to being a card-carrying Communist. The only thing worse would be to disparage the Great Game of Football – and truth be told, I’m not exactly wild about that, either -- but at least I can watch a football game on TV. This season, for instance, I saw both Green Bay/Vikings games, then thoroughly enjoyed the Viking’s scorched-earth thrashing of the Dallas Cowboys last weekend.

Maybe there is a God, after all -- and I'm not even a Vikings fan. I'm just pulling for the old guy playing quarterback. If that isn't proof that I am not now -- nor have I ever been -- a member of the Communist Party, then I don't know what is. I just don’t much care for basketball, that's all.

I bring this up only so you’ll understand just how impressive this short clip really is – a minute and change of a man throwing a basketball. I’ve watched it twice now, and just might watch it again. It’s pretty cool.

Almost cool enough to change my mind about watching basketball on TV, except they really don’t make shots like this in any NBA game.

When you’re done, you might enjoy wandering through more of the rather amazing J-Walk Blog, where I stumbled across this clip. If it’s raining cats and dogs outside, and you’re currently unemployed with lots of time to kill, you can spend quite a while there and still not hate yourself afterwards.

1 comment:

Eric said...

I'm with you, Michael. Basketball, football and baseball all make me want to cut out my fingernails with my leatherman.

That's why I watch hockey.