Starting Five
1. One Scandal at a Time, Please
Benghazi. The IRS. The Associated Press. Oh, for those halcyon days when Kim Jong-Un was threatening to launch a nuke or POTUS was found to be shooting 2 for 22 from the field. Or was that J.R. Smith?
Zach Randolph, the patron saint of baby fat, had game-highs of 28 points and 14 boards.
2. Thunder Out. Tornadoes In.
The Oklahoma City Thunder, the darlings of last year’s NBA postseason, are eliminated in five games by the Memphis Grizzlies in Round 2. OKC trailed by two entering the fourth quarter at home, but the Grizz opened the quarter on a 16-6 run, fueled by the softest mid-range touch in the postseason, that belonging to center Marc Gasol. OKC had a chance to tie it in the final seconds, but Kevin Durant clanged an 18-footer. Meanwhile in north Texas, eight tornadoes rip through the countryside, leaving six people dead.
3. Mark Seal explores the Oscar Pistorius-Reeva Steenkamp murder case in Vanity Fair.
4. “At first they were reluctant to accept the clothing. Perhaps they did not want to be associated with narcissistic date-rapers.” One man’s campaign against Abercrombie & Fitch being the James Spader of clothing lines, and it’s a good one.
“Abs-ercrombie & Fitch. ABS-ercrombie! Get it?
5. BottleRock 2013. Here’s a review. The T-shirt I would’ve printed? “BottleRock 2013: Bin There, Done That.”
OKC losing without Westbrook is like Chicago without Derrick Rose. It’s like there is an asterisk affixed to each team departing the playoffs. It’s slowly killing off any expectations I had of the Heat being genuinely challenged in the postseason.
I ducked into Explore Booksellers on a rainy afternoon in Aspen, CO a few summers ago, and serendipitously met Vanity Fair author Mark Seal. He has carved out an admirable niche investigating and exposing the most egregious fabricators in history. In that regard, it appears Pistorious will be notorious.
My vote for the inaugural wine/music fest T-shirt?
BottleRock 2013: The Ultimate Tannin Salon