Utah Jazz or Basketball fatigue

So the Jazz are in the first round of the playoffs, heading for game 5 in Houston tomorrow. Go Jazz, I guess.
I've reached pro basketball fatigue. Games are fine. Reporting the results is fine. But what feels like fifty seven hours of pre-game every game is killing any enthusiasm I might have mustered. It's good when the Jazz win, it makes a lot of people I know very happy and makes Salt Lake City in general happy.
Just like any other religion, please do not force your NBA on me and I'll try to respect your faith and show at least a polite interest. I don't want you to love baseball and the Running Utes, I just want you to respect my love of baseball and the Running Utes, even if I can't understand why you wouldn't love them.
Saturday I was watching the Jazz game at Junior's Tavern, and realized that I was just watching movement, not paying a lick of attention to the game. If I could have afforded it I would've bought a round for the bar for 20 minutes of baseball. The Braves could've been playing the Yankees and I would've been happy.

Real Salt Lake, (or is it Sandy?) has won a game already, I guess that's worth mentioning, too.

How could I have forgotten to follow up on Bob Woolmer?

I was so fascinated with the death of cricket coach Bob Woolmer last spring and then I've neglected a follow up. The June 13, 2007 verdict was that he died of heart failure, and then the next day it was announced that the investigation would continue.
Here's a link to links that round up the whole case to June 14.
The coroner's inquest finally ended in November with an open verdict. The Telegraph had a nice article on the inquest as did most of the English news sources, you can look for them on your own.
Here's the year later article from the Gleaner

Going to church

Cross-posted to Beck's Day where I ramble about things that are not usually sports related, though I do occasionally post things to the wrong blog.

Please do not read this if you are a serious church goer with no sense of humor. I mean no disrespect, just to say that my perfect Sunday involves a matinee baseball game, a movie and karaoke at Burt's Tiki Lounge. If that's a problem for you I'm sorry and can't do a thing about it.

First to explain. A former co-worker, now returned to Nebraska, walked over to me on a Friday and said "Will I see you in church on Sunday?" I was confused since I haven't actually been to a non-wedding or funeral church service since Easter 1989 in Frankfurt, (then West) Germany. He explained that he was talking about the Sunday matinee baseball game that weekend, the only day he could go to games since he worked the night shift.
Since then the Sunday games have been "going to church." I sit outside and revel in the glory of the sunshine and sky, watch well-tuned people glory in the use of their bodies, partake of a communion of hot dogs and beer and sing a hundred year old hymn in the middle of the 7th.
Hallelujah and pass the peanuts.

I've got a somewhat weak poem that I wrote during the first inning of last Sunday's 8-1 Bees win. I won't be bothered at all if you stop reading here. In fact, go to mlb.com and check how your team is doing, or how my poor Tigers and not so bad Brewers are today.
Let's make that 2 poems, though the Salt Lake Bees and Fresno Grizzlies wrote the first one:
R H E
Fresno 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 4 2
Bees 5 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 8 15 2

Pilgrimage
I passed three churches
on my way to the library,
the congregants didn't look happy
going in or coming out,
but I was listening to bluegrass
and not concerned
with their fear of damnation
only with renewing my book.
Then I drank some coffee
and chatted with the boys.
Here, at the ballpark,
the congregation is happy,
taking a communion
of hot dogs and beer.
A weird mix of Pentecostal noise
and Catholic ritual.
2 runs, 5 hits, 1 out in the first
with three men on.
What better church in April,
month of poetry and early season hope?

Can you say 21-1?

The local media in Salt Lake seems to have a problem with the Bees -- maybe that they're off to one of the best starts ever in Minor League Baseball and it's the NBA playoffs first round with the Jazz playing fairly well against the Houston Rockets.
Harrumph.
They manage to get U, Utah State and that school down south all in during college football and basketball seasons, so why not a minute for the Bees? I was disgusted by KUTV last Saturday (4/26) when the Bees had switched their schedule to a day game and they couldn't be bothered to give a score on the 5 pm news, Jazz pre-game, which is all fine, but then to spend the rest of the time on golf and other non-local sports... How long does it take to give a score? Granted, it may have been given on the ticker, but I didn't have my glasses on and their white on blue is not the easiest thing to read with the glasses.
21-1. It's phenomenal. The team is hitting .317 and has a 3.21 ERA. That's the team, not just the best hitters and pitchers. I fear that Matt Brown, who is hitting .429 with 6 HRs can probably hear the Angels calling. I hope not, but won't be surprised when he gets the call. And I've been told by a serious Angels fan that Nick Adenhart (.87 ERA, 4 Ws 0 Ls in 5 games) is about the hottest pitching prospect in baseball. I believe.
Larry Miller's sports advertising people just may have it right with their "One Team, One Dream" logo, they just seem to have put in on the wrong sport.
5,197 was the attendance yesterday (Sunday), and the congregation looked a lot happier going in than it did at any of the churches I passed that morning.
Hallelujah.