--A few weeks ago I wrote down a to-do list of albums I still needed to listen to, consisting of the dozens I picked up this year and a dozen or so that I needed to revisit. I just counted them up, and I've got 140 total. I've listened to 20. Every road, single step, and so on.
--I should've said something about the Finals last week, but didn't. Suffice it to say that I'm the kind of masochist who enjoys games like Game 7, with its epic tension and incredible defensive performances. As great as the Celtics' D was (particularly Garnett, who played with a truly legendary, life-or-death intensity reminiscent of the 2008 Playoffs), the way the Lakers rotated and communicated in the 4th quarter was magnificent. Once I got past the sad realization that Garnett and Ray Allen would probably never have another shot at the title, I couldn't resent the Lakers' victory. That team was just so damned good when it counted.
--I mention Garnett and Allen in particular because they're the most likely to get moved in this offseason, in my opinion. Allen especially has been linked to trade talks, and on a team that asks less of him on defense (like, say, I don't know, the Cleveland Cavaliers), Ray will still be a lights-out shooter. Garnett, meanwhile, has a mondo contract, and the Celtics are very much at a crossroads regarding his contributions vs. the team's future.
--In other sports news, the World Cup went ham on the collective American imagination, and it's been awesome (occasionally). I was rooting especially hard for Cote d'Ivoir in the interest of Africa having something to cheer for, but Brazil took a big ol' dump on that dream. Luckily, the US Mutant Ninja Turtles have performed well beyond my expectations, lucking into a 1-1 draw with England, a 3-2 draw with Slovenia, and a 1-0 win over Algeria. I still think Landon Donovan's an alien, but I have to like him now.
--I'm tempted to do a semi-regular column on lesser-known, interesting athletes in the sports I follow. What spurs me on is Ricky Stanzi, QB for the Iowa Hawkeyes, who isn't a first-tier QB by any means, but is still one of my favorite players in college ball. The man is a patriot, speed demon, and awesome dude. He's also only good when it matters, making the Hawkeyes one of the most consistently dramatic teams to watch last year. Perhaps most importantly, he's got a bitchin' nickname: Stanzi is the Manzi. Much of my love for the Manzi is a reflection of how perfect a team blog Black Heart Gold Pants is, and how fun it is to follow during football season.
--I haven't followed the Alvin Greene situation nearly as closely as I would have liked, but suffice it to say that it's absolutely crazy, and continuing, superfluous evidence that democracy is a bad idea.
--On that "democracy is dumb" tip, here's the trailer for Glenn Beck's new book, The Overton Window, which is perfectly apt both in that a) it's crazy and b) it's disingenuous, as the narrator is reading an (uncredited) Rudyard Kipling poem.
--Two Washington Post articles worthy of your perusal: a tribute to Manute Bol, who I never got to watch but who could do this, and quasi-ethical piece on John Wall, who I haven't gotten to watch that much, but who can do this.
--Coming up later this week: reviews of District 9 and LCD Soundsystem's Sound of Silver. I can legitimately guarantee those two, because they're already mostly written.
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