Border Collies

When I was growing up, we had a dog that I named Ranger. Ranger was a black-and-white border collie, and was extremely smart. I could look at that dog a certain way and he would know what I wanted him to do. He was large for a border collie - he weighed about 50 lbs. If you take the time to train them and keep them entertained, they can do some amazing things...

Border Collie Chaplin Routine

...however...

Ranger was rather foul-tempered. He would go crazy around other dogs, barking ferociously and then attacking them balls out. Since he was smart, he figured out how to get out of the backyard and stir up trouble in the neighborhood. He was also allergic to fleas, and lost all the hair on the back half of his body. Due to his continued habit of getting out and attempting to eat other dogs, we had to take him to the pound, where (and it's getting a little dusty in here all of a sudden...) he probably lived for most of an hour before getting put down.

My brother Aaron was heartbroken that the dog was taken without him knowing, so that weekend, we went out and got Buster, an Australian Shepherd. Buster was a sweet dog, but dumb as dirt. He once ran full-speed into a chain link fence when I called him from the other side. He was so docile that when Eclipse, my parent's cat, came over to him, he would relinquish his spot. Buster was Aaron's dog; Ranger was mine.

I'm now about a year into having my second pet, Wolfy. Wolfy is a smart cat, and was the most spirited kitten of his litter. He's big and beautiful, weighing in at about 15 pounds. He's rather foul-tempered though, so much so that my mom doesn't like to come over because she's afraid Wolfy will attack her. Ellen thinks he has dominance issues, and she's probably right - he needs to be the alpha male in the house, and is trying to make this clear to me. He's probably bored living in this house, too, and wants to be hunting and killing things, like a good cat should. Maybe I ought to train Wolfy to do a Chaplin routine. It would sure beat taking him to the pound...

Well, the Finals are on...

...and the Spurs are wrapping up another win over the Detroit Pistons to go up 2-0. The way things are going, I don't think that this series will go 5, which means if I'm going to comment on it, I'd better do it quick...

Some random thoughts...

1) Noticed that they show an Eva Longoria reaction shot every time Tony Parker makes a nice play. Needless to say, I hope Parker goes for 30 in every game...

2) When they turn the camera on Hubie Brown and Al Michaels (the broadcasters), right between them is a guy with a Valvoline "Go Spurs Go" shirt, who then proceeds to mug and let the at-home audience know that the Spurs are #1. This guy is a solid 75 on the UCR...

3)Manu Ginobli is unbelievable - he is absolutely everywhere. Other than Duncan, he's probably the best player in this series. Then again, I think I'm biased toward tall, goofy-looking dudes with big noses who were born in the last week of July in 1977. I'm especially partial to the "Obi Wan Ginobli" posters (originally seen on Hornfans, typical of the...

4) ...fans who love their team more than any other fans love their team (and yes, I'm including Red Sox fans too). Every year come playoff time, everyone in the city puts on their spurs shirts, puts "Go Spurs Go" on the sign in front of their businesses, and strike up conversations with complete strangers about their love for the Spurs. It unites the vibrant city in a beautiful way.

5) The Spurs are now up 97-75, and Rasho is in the game. Again, I'll be suprised if this series goes 5 games. Then again, last year in this space, I said the Lakers were done when they went down 2-0 to the Spurs.

Lesson, as always: I'm an idiot...