This is one of those days where there are 17 things I want to blog about. But you don’t have that kind of time and frankly, neither do I. So I’ll stick to three things.
There are not that many other things besides writing that I’m qualified to do. Trivia expert on the 1980s New York Rangers hockey teams. Reciter of every TV sitcom theme song from my childhood. Expert on watching 3-4 different sporting events at once, and keeping track of them perfectly.
But you know, maybe I’m selling myself short (easy to do, as I’m 5-foot-5). Maybe I could look at second careers of other sportswriters and see opportunity.
Like Monday, I read about this guy, Kevin Provencher. He was a sportswriter for a newspaper in New Hampshire when the current newspaper downturn forced him to take a pay cut. So Kev did what just about every other sportswriter I know would’ve done:
He became a pimp. Yep, Provencher went from writing about balls and strikes to, well, I guess his job still involves …
Provencher would recruit women through craigslist and other sites, and “arranged for them to meet men in hotel rooms, then demanded half of their earnings plus the cost of the hotel room,” prosecutors allege.
I know this is not a laughing matter. I know it’s a serious crime that Provencher committed, taking advantage of desperate women.
It just boggles my mind to think of a guy in my very profession also being a pimp. (hey, sportswriters have a hard time getting girls, but really now …)
**So, “Big Love”, a show I loved, came to an end Sunday night. SPOILER ALERT if you haven’t seen it yet, but really, it’s Tuesday people; if you’re a fan, you’ve seen it.
I was disappointed with the finale, mostly. I am angry they just let Bill “off the hook” by having him die. They totally dropped last week’s riveting Albie storyline, barely making mention of it. And I totally didn’t understand what happened to Home Plus.
But the finale did have its great moments, like Lois and Frank lying in bed together, as he euthanized her (trust me, it’s sweeter than I’m making it sound). And the final scene was touching, as all three wives seemed to finally be at peace.
For five years, “Big Love” was a maddening, wonderful three-act drama of a show, and I truly will miss it. It wasn’t perfect, but it was damn good.
**Finally, an uplifting story that ought to inspire you. A kid named Anthony Robles of Arizona State University won an NCAA wrestling championship at the 125-pound weight class on Saturday.
Also, Robles was born with only one leg.
And yet through years of training and dedication, this kid made himself into one of the best wrestlers in the country. He defeated the reigning champion in his class and finished his college career on top.
With one leg, Robles became the best. A sensational kid and a sensational story. To think what most of us complain about on a daily basis, and yet look at this kid… so inspiring.
I loved this quote at the end of that story I linked:
“I wrestle because I love wrestling, but it inspires me when I get kids, even adults, who write me on Facebook or send me letters in the mail just saying that I’ve inspired them, and they look up to me, and they’re motivated to do things that other people wouldn’t have thought possible.”
