1. I watched more episodes of The Last Dance this afternoon. My favorite passages in this docuseries occur when we get to see video clips of action from past playoff series. I'm not sure I want to see the NBA return to the physical, often violent style of play employed by the Pistons when they won championships in 1989 and 1990 nor of the New York Knicks in the 1990s. But watching highlights of those temper-filled, bruising games and coming to understand the work Michael Jordan undertook to add muscle so that he could administer physical contact and not just get pushed around and knocked to the floor time and time again was fascinating.
I also enjoy remembering what was happening in my life in Eugene during the different seasons the docuseries covers. They include, in no particular order, starting to work at LCC, the wonderful friends I spent time with, scintillating weeks at Shakespeare Camp, buying the house on Madison, marrying Debbie, making a trip to Austin with Debbie, team teaching with Rita, getting the long-running Shakespeare Showcase underway, expanding my curiosity in the kitchen, hosting Bill Davie house concerts and going to his concerts in Eugene, Corvallis, Yachats, and Seattle, going to many other live concerts, especially at the WOW Hall, The Wild Duck, and the Hilton Ballroom. And so much more.
It's fun to dive into this professional basketball history spanning the career of Michael Jordan and the Bulls and to have memories I cherish spring up at the same time.
2. Tonight, Ed, Brian K, Brian's mom, Rose Lake's Tim and Cindy, Jake, Carol Lee, Diane, Debbie and I all sat around one round table at the Elks and had a great time eating burgers and fries, enjoying an adult beverage or two, telling stories, and, for those of us new to each other, getting to know each other better. Mayor Mac Pooler came over to see me and told a handful of funny stories about my dad and their wild times golfing and told me the blue spruce is thriving, the tree he and others planted in Dad's memory near the old beer shed near the in between the fifth green and sixth hole tee box and the eighth green and ninth hold tee box. Believe me, Mac and Pert, and other co-conspirators like Ed Werlinger, Woody Day, and others had some hilarious times on the course and during their extended visits to the 19th hole.
3. After finishing our burgers, everyone but Brian and his mom headed across the street to The Lounge. When we walked in, I had no idea that we'd be there for about the next five hours, but that's how it turned out. I helped SAVE THE PORTER by enjoying a couple slow pints. Then I cut myself off. I had a great talk at the bar with Diane. We did some Kellogg dreamin', imagining how things might be improved and enlivened uptown. Debbie sat at a table with other women -- Diane joined them at one point -- and Debbie kept coming up to me at the bar saying, "This is the best night ever!" . I was glad I had I switched to drinking glass after glass of club soda for at least two hours so that I'd be in good shape to take Diane and Debbie home.
I conversed with Cas, Harley, Jeremy Seatz, Ron Delcamp, Tamie (Lewis) Eberhart and others. I had several moments when I sat quietly and enjoyed the great energy pulsing merrily throughout The Lounge, as tonight's happy crowd enjoyed drinking, playing pool, yakking, laughing, and being together at The Inland Lounge.
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