Skip to main content

March Madness Sets In

Hey Soul Mates,
how are you? Happy St. Patrick's Day.

I've been busy here on the internet. I've been putting together the promotional materials for our upcoming show at the Gig on April 7. Updating our myspace group. Doing some publishing work with BMI online. It's been productive.

I'm still waiting for a break through on some of my new songs. The music is completed. Melodies are in place. Just checking all the frequencies for themes, thoughts and words. Those will come soon enough. Usually in a flood.

OK, so why the March Madness? It's March Madness Bay-Beeeee as Dickie V. would say. Who's Dickie V? Why Dick Vitale, the college basketball guru. The first day of the Men's NCAA basketball tourney began today. I managed to watch a tip off before running to work; a half of a game at lunch; and the various feeds after work. My brackets haven't been busted yet. All of my Sweet 16 teams are still in the running. We'll see how long that lasts. I actually finished "in the money" 5 years ago in a large pool. That would be fun to repeat. The teams I'm actually cheering for are Georgia Tech, my brother's alma mater and Wisconsin, my cousin Ben's old school. Having spent a weekend in Madison, I know those people love the Badgers. Their mascot, Bucky, is one of the best in sports. Don't know what his % is from the 3.

My old school is in the second-tier NIT. They tore up their opposition yesterday. And in the next round they are actually playing a meaningful game on campus. Something they never did when I attended. I was talking to my homeboy Chris during the games tonight and he's a Bball freek. I am too, usually, but this year, I haven't had as much time to devote to following hoops. Maybe next year: when my team's in the Big Dance.

I have followed the NCAA's (as they are lovingly called) since that fateful year Magic Johnson and the Spartans stuck it to Larry Bird's Sycamores. Each March since, I have enjoyed filling out the brackets and tracking the progress of schools that most people never hear about: Davidson; Bucknell; Manhattan; Pacific; Evansville. Or local schools with little chance of advancing: Cleveland State (which actually beat Indiana in '85); Jacksonville University. There would be colleges I'd latch onto midseason sure they'd be the chic pick: Mississippi State; Arizona; Pepperdine! I'm not sure why. Each year I followed selection Sunday and would try to keep pace by writing down the 32 first round match-ups. That's unnecessary now, 'cause the information is instantaneously released on the web. Science!

What makes the NCAA's so exciting in the early rounds, what no amount of technology can spoil, is seeing these unknowns all with a fresh chance to have an impact, to extend their season, to make history. It's like the beginning of the baseball season (more on that soon): hope springing eternal. Upsets are fun. As long as they don't ruin your brackets. Watching a favorite run the table is pretty awesome. Provided you picked 'em. Usually, events fall somewhere in between. Like tonight, when bottom ranked Fairleigh-Dickinson held #1 in the country Illinois to a tie game at the half. How exciting for the folks from FDU. For 20 minutes, they ran with the big boys. Or #10 seed Creighton giving the rock to their main man, Nate Funk, with the game on the line and he misses a trey at the buzzer. Ouch.

Every year a Cinderella, every year a Goliath, every year a Hero, every year a Goat. But what a rush!

Love, Power, Peace

(That's my cue to get back to work!)

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Being There [Grammy Recap]

Hey Soul Mates, Check out your boy. Yes, I did look that damn suave at the Grammys last night. Look, the tickets very clearly said "black tie." What could be less rock and roll than black tie? Not wearing "black tie." Frankly, the hipsters and the club girls just looked silly. Maybe I'm getting sartorially conservative, but you must be clean for the Grammys. We arrived early in the afternoon. A beautifully mild afternoon in downtown L.A. and not a sign of the predicted rain. I wanted to experience the whole nine, so we got there in time for the "Pre-telecast" ceremony. This is where 97 of the 108 gramophone statuettes are awarded. It was much more entertaining and endearing than the actual broadcast. The winners were genuinely moved, were not limited in their speech time and came in all stripes. Now, very few of the acts I voted for won. But the day did start off with a bang as OK Go won best short form video for the treadmill hopping video for Here...

John Lennon 40 Years On

Remembering John Lennon today. Forty years have flashed by. I can still hear my clock radio turning on to the incongruent sound of the Beatles on Dec. 9, 1980 and wondering why? I think about John every day. I am fortunate to have been able to make pilgrimage to Mendips, Abbey Road and Strawberry Fields, NY; to play on stages like the Cavern, the Jacaranda and the Troubadour where he performed or made trouble, or both. Here’s a quick playlist for you and me. (Just Like) Starting Over I Should Have Known Better Bless You Nobody Told Me Strawberry Fields Forever Nowhere Man Enjoy the day. Fill it with peace. Fill it with music. #JohnLennon #Liverpool

Murderous Haircut of the Mayor of Bel Air - Book Review

“The Murderous Haircut of the Mayor of Bel Air” is a trippy new mystery novel from Phillip Mottaz. It captures the grit and gilt of the City of Angels with the flair of a contemporary Raymond Chandler. The brisk pace and wit are reminiscent of Douglas Adams’s entries in the detective game. Flourishes of  Fletch  and “Medium” also spring to mind. However, Mottaz has added a psychic/mutant/superhuman touch and his own comedic voice, structure and internal monologues to the proceedings that help the author announce his own style and the arrival of a literary heroine for a new generation. Hairstylist and budding private investigator, Danica Luman is the perfect character to convey the irony, angst and sarcasm needed to tell a 21st century L.A. crime story. Danica also represents anyone who thought it would be neat to get tangled up in a mystery and the darkly comic cautionary tale that follows. The genre is recognizable, but Mottaz offers a fresh take on the not-ready-for-prime-ti...