less drowning, more land.
i know next to nothing about sports.
i never watch them…
except for the olympics.
and i never played them…
well, there were a few exceptions:
-i was on the horseback
riding team in high school.
but that had less to do with horses
and more to do with my crush on a girl
on the team.
-i wrestled. but that was more about
the movie ’visionquest.’
plus, i quit after i pierced
my nose in 10th grade and was
forced to choose between the two.
-oh… and there was my AMAZING stint
as the JV girls tennis team water boy with
mark shirazi…
reason for that is pretty self explanatory.
anyway, my point is…
i’m from boston.
and growing up in boston in the 80’s,
two things were for sure:
first, you had a mullet
and you wore that shit proud.
second, even if you hated sports,
even if sports killed your family…
you loved celtics basketball.
last night, i saw an amazing HBO documentary
called ’magic&bird: a courtship of rivals.’
i was surprised how emotional the footage of the
old lakers and celtics games made me.
not to get too sappy-time here, but i never
recognized the grace and the beauty in it before.
watching the clips last night felt otherworldly.
like the best parts of music.
or dance.
or movies.
or poetry.
or painting.
humans as conduits for extraordinary things.
it’s crucial that a society recognize and
emphasis this kind of greatness.
this kind of beauty.
especially now, in our culture, where the focus has
shifted so heavily in favor of celebrity and spectacle.
we need more than that.
we need to be INSPIRED.
we need to be elevated.
we need larger, more consistent examples of
what extraordinary REALLY looks like.
because that’s the only way we will ever see
what we are TRULY capable of.
April 3rd, 2010 at 1:12 pm
While my entire family bleeds hoops, this is exactly why I can never be a fan of today’s NBA. There isn’t enough camaraderie to carry off the courts. My love lives and dies at the original Dream Team. The brotherhood of Magic, Bird, and other legends will most likely never be seen again.
PS Thank you for updating on the blog as well!
April 3rd, 2010 at 8:05 pm
you had a pierced nose?! that is awesome!! i just keep finding more things about you that i like
April 6th, 2010 at 5:58 pm
lovely sentiments
.
I don’t get to say I ‘grew up’ in the Boston area, but I did move to waltham from nyc for college, in the 80s, and enjoyed all you mullet-ed boston boys
And Celtics basketball too, with my boston-bred friends who were as you say huge Celtics fans whether they would otherwise care about sports or not. I’ll have to check out this documentary–there was palpable magic in that celtics/lakers bird/magic relationship, and it always felt beautifully epic to watch it all.
April 7th, 2010 at 3:25 pm
just thought that I would point out that “Vision Quest” was filmed in my hometown (Spokane, WA) along with Benny and Joon….
can’t wait for the new album and for you to come back to Spokane for the 4th time….
April 7th, 2010 at 3:55 pm
Dude… I am a knicks fan and that documentary got me emotional!! Looking forward to your next record!!!
April 7th, 2010 at 5:35 pm
the last paragraph - SO true. YOu said a mouthful there. But at least YOU are reaching towards that extraordinary. That’s why I listen to you. You truly inspire me. Thanks
April 9th, 2010 at 10:56 am
I am from Boston too and I know what you mean. I still root for the Celtics and Red Sox even though I left Boston for in 1992. I remember buying scalped tix to what the Celtics in 1987 for $150.00/ticket. It was the best experience I ever had. The old garden - you were so close to everything. Then the “bleacher creatures” in Fenway Park in the summer.
I really miss that city….