5-at-10 on the move
OK, friends, we are headed West. We know you will play nice because we have crafted a forum of decorum. And that pleases me.
But we will post this morning - and we will post every morning, because hey, that's what we do - from the crazy busy airport in the A-T-L about to catch a flight to Boise for a family wedding and then several days out in the far country.
(Side question: Rushmore of Idaho, whatcha got?)
It also leaves us in a strange spot in a surreal time. Gang, be kind. More than that, be polite.
Man, I never thought I would say this, but we can all wish D.C. was more like the 5-at-10 community.
(Side note: People-watching at the airport should be a cable channel. This place is KER-razy insane. And, as always, if you are a grown man who is not a pediatrician, a weatherman, heading to prom or down the aisle, or getting out of a mini-vehicle with 14 of your clown coworkers, the bow tie is a poor choice.)
Sigh.
Arms race
Dang the expansion obsession knows no bounds.
There are reports that the ACC views the upcoming conference convention as a leper colony.
There are reports that the Big Ten was Notre Dame, Stanford, UNC and Oregon.
And forget the sinking ship that could be the ACC or the S.S. Minnow that the pac-12 has become, the oxymoronic nature of the Big Ten's next targets are staggering.
The Big Ten presidents clearly want to pat each other on the back and say, "College, college, college," in every turn.
But adding Oregon is the "Hey, Nike has billions, and we'd like billions, and has anyone seen the TV show "Billions" recently," testament of this whole shebang.
And then you look around and the rest of the heads in the ACC are spinning.
Quick question? If those reports are true - Stanford, Oregon, Notre Dame and UNC, and they make sense since the Big Ten is big-game hunting - where does Duke go?
So about that
"Minions" and whatever the rest of the title soared over the Independence Day weekend.
I'm good with that. I like Gru, and I like the Minions. Ba-NAN-na.
Conversely, and somewhat surprisingly, "Lightyear" - the backstory of Buzz Lightyear from the "Toy Story" series - has tanked this summer, which in a lot of ways has been a welcome back, welcome back, welcome back return to theaters thanks to Maverick.
But, if we are going to be honest here, you have to wonder how much has the backlash of Disney blackballing Tim Allen for his political views affected the box office numbers for "Lightyear" this summer?
I know Allen will always be Buzz in my mind. And I like wicked Chris is the new Buzz.
This and that
- So Bryson DeChambeau says he got north of $125 million to play in the LIV. Gang, I'm sorry, but it's really hard to begrudge a man in his 20s for taking nine figures guaranteed for anything that is not illegal and allows him to keep his pants on. Period.
- Braves played. Braves crushed baseballs. Atlanta beat St. Louis 7-1. That's the good news. It allowed the Braves to pull within 2.5 games of the NL East leading Mets. That's also good news. The bad news? The Mets got Max Scherzer back last night and Jacob deGrom is on his way too.
- The Nick Kyrgios storyline continues to be tabloid worthy and something Wimbledon wants nothing to do with.
- Gotta say I love this clause in the new CBA that could let Albert Pujols be on the NL All-Star team in his final season of a Hall of Fame career.
Today's questions
Which way Wednesday starts this way: Which current MLB player is more of a slam dunk Hall of Famer than Albert Pujols? Which MLB player is right behind Pujols then?
Which Pixar character is the GOAT?
Which airport is the best you've visited? (The one in Salt Lake City was pretty sweet.)
Which school moves to the Big Ten next? With school heads to the SEC next, because the SEC is assuredly not going to sit back and watch the Big Ten be the buzz of college sports?
As for today, July 6, let's review.
On this day in 1885, Louis Pasteur gave a 9-year-old an anti-rabies vaccine and saved his life.
On this day 20 years ago, Serena beat Venus at Wimbledon for the younger Williams' first Grand Slam title.
George W. Bush is 76 today.
Rushmore of 'W' and be creative.
Enjoy the day, and be kind.