GLEE Night - Don't Rain On My Parade

Yeah, that's right. 

The day started with a fantastic show on FOX Sports Radio alongside LaVar Arrington. We spent a lot of the show discussing the upcoming college football season and the myriad decisions facing administrators, coaches, players and support staff. Several top players opted out of playing earlier in the week, citing concerns related to Covid-19 (the virus itself, as well as its impact on continuity for the season) and preparatory work for the 2021 NFL Draft. As of Sunday morning, administrators were considering scrapping the fall season across the Power-5 conferences. The MAC (Mid-American Conference) and UCONN have already tapped out, citing safety concerns and the recognition of revenue losses. 

It's a weighty decision for each conference and the individual institutions, to be sure. We're talking hundred of millions of dollars to towns across the country, say nothing of the financial rewards to be recognized by the schools themselves. So, there's cash, liability related to Covid-19 exposure (huge implications) and the growing debate over amateurism and compensation for college athletes.

The heavy stuff was offset by our normal brand of humor, pop culture references and improvisation. 

We handed the microphones over to Rich & Steve and Sunday began. We made a trip to a Chicago classic - "Portillo's" -- and their space in Los Angeles. We got a taste of home and paused.

The singalong continued, and we eventually settled in for a night of relaxation and laughs. Somehow, we reached an agreement to sit and watch GLEE. I sold the sarcasm and snark of Sue Sylvester, so that helped. And it's been a glorious run of one-liners, classic songs and laughter. 

I'll take the W.

Centerfield - Life Begins Anew

Centerfield

Couldn't sleep. Thoughts swirling about with myriad topics intertwined. Show prep, day trip plans, meal planning and exercise schedules are just the tip of the iceberg.

We're quickly rushing to the end of summer (I know you got the "Back to Virtual School" emails, too). But, kids and parents don't seem any closer to their natural fall separations. And I'm sure more than a few of you can relate to chores undone and the anxiousness for a return to "normal."

We took at least a baby step forward this weekend, as the first of our traditional "Big 4" team sports finally got back to work. The counter stopped at 134 days. While we waited, we debated restart propositions, mocked myriad test balloons leaked to media personnel and dove headfirst into discussions about health, legal matters, education and social justice. There's a period of introspection and empathy underway that is unlike anything we've seen in recent memory.

The technological boom has allowed us to stay connected and push through a lot of our normal functions. Many people have attended a virtual happy hour or birthday party. Conference calls with a video component are becoming part of the normal paces of running an office.

And, we've used that technology to tap into our collective past. Across the sporting universe, we've heard and seen our heroes of the past and present more than ever. Whether appearing as guests from their living rooms on a radio or television show, sports stars have been regaling America with witty anecdotes, inspirational speeches about their careers and pop culture commiseration.

Each of those clips whetted our collective appetite for live game action, and we scoured the internet for clips and highlights to try and fill that void. The podcast I do with my radio partner, Jason Smith, is called "Special Teams." Each week, we celebrate the good, bad and ugly teams of our collective sporting universe. We fill in the blanks of how those teams were built, succeeded or failed, and how the culmination of those seasons changed the game.

And we laugh ... a lot. We talk of baseball cards from our youth, playing until the lights came on (oftentimes incurring the wrath of our parents) and those heroes that made us love this game. The first heartbreaks of most of our lives occurred on a playing field.

I'll do a separate blog to talk about the changes in Major League Baseball for 2020 and some of the specifics from the early visuals. But quickly ...

We used to get free tickets for straight A's and perfect attendance as kids. Magical nights at Comiskey Park helped forge a lifelong love of the game.

Dr. Fauci didn't find the mark with his first pitch, but he got the "Boys of Summer" off and pacing for 2020. As we contemplate things lost in our lives, in a general sense and those specific to the pandemic, we celebrate the crack of a bat or pop of a mitt.

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Hamilton - Look Around

"Why do you write like you're running out of time?" 

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That line from "Hamilton" resonates.

At one point, I was a columnist/analyst for Yahoo! Sports while working a full-time job there ... and working on my MBA. I was burning the candle at both ends, and probably doing my best to set the middle aflame as well.

When I first heard “Hamilton” years ago, that voracious appetite to spill prose and experience EVERYTHING was very real. And it’s still very much part of the existence. How much (you can insert your own benchmarks) can you fit into your waking hours?

Hell, that's the challenge even now with my radio life. Even in this Covid-19 world with American team sports sidelined, we still leave piles of material and stories on the floor. Sometimes in sports cycles, we have to read a ton of material to become junior lawyers. Other times, like now, we're doing what we can to be moderately knowledgeable about the medical field. This past month, we've turned attention back to the history books and sociological studies. And there's the spidering effect, as I call it, for all of the other disciplines that make the sports world hum along. Be nimble.

We get to tell about our days, our triumphs and struggles, our families and adventures, and any glimpses of insight into how we're "coping." 

Sure, there's a bit of cabin fever going on (not like the movie that the kid from "Boy Meets World" was in -- made ya laugh), so we work to include more walks and cards/board games. And laughs. And we work to enjoy those extra minutes together. 

It's not easy to keep the focus where it should be. There are still show notes to prepare, news to watch, read and process. Bills need to be paid and meals prepped and the clock runs against you. 

But be grateful for those extra minutes. Take a picture. Make a memory. And hold tight like you're running out of time. 

Card Art - Blake Jamieson & TOPPS Project 2020

Sports, Art & Finding Your Passion

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I got a chance to catch up with Artist Blake Jamieson, who has caused a stir in the sports card collecting universe with his involvement in TOPPS Project 2020. The legendary trading card company is producing an ambitious set, with 20 artists giving their unique spins on 20 of the most iconic rookie cards.

The art-sports card connections go back decades, from the early TOPPS releases of the 1950's to the "paint jobs" on cards for players who had been traded or changed teams. Add insert sets with collaborations with Peter Max, among others, and the time was right for another mixing of mediums.

Harmon and Jamieson talk about the hobby, the success of Project 2020 and how Jamieson's journey into full-time artist began.

With You There To Help Me - Father's Day 2020

With You There To Help Me 

We celebrated Father's Day on Sunday.

It started with my Sunday usual, a four-hour trek on the radio. We had a lot of laughs and goofiness between the serious stories that intersect sports and society. And we told a few of our favorite memories growing up --- like getting carried off a football field by your father like a sack of potatoes after having an opponent twist your leg at the bottom of a pile.

Yeah, good times. I naturally gravitated back to those early concert experiences (Jethro Tull very early on) and the eclectic musical choices of the downstairs bar. When home decompressing from his shifts and scrawling numbers and notes into legal pads, my dad would work the record player. And the range was amazing - pivoting between Tull, Willie Nelson, Pink Floyd, Beatles and Stones, and all of the classic singer-songwriters.

I'll always regret not being more proactive in starting dialogues as a kid. Much left unsaid and questions unasked. But we communicated and commiserated through song. And there were plenty of lessons learned about care, consideration and work ethic. And I got louder (see the 24 hours each week on the radio).

And I'm a lot louder in the day-to-day as well. I'm sure my daughters wish the questions and comedy bits would back off at times, particularly when friends are over.

The lockdown during Covid-19 has been a blessing in my respects - for me, anyway. I'm sure they'd have been thrilled to keep moving in practices, workouts and rehearsals. Hell, they've both asked about just continuing the school year given restrictions on activities.

We still got a final recital in on Father's Day, and a bunch of time munching on snacks and watching silly television and movies. And hearing them giggling together over TikTok videos while watching "The Office" was everything.

The roller coasters of emotions and thoughts stop for a minute. Everything's right with the world. 

It Don't Come Easy - June 17th

It Don't Come Easy 

I restarted this entry several times before committing to the awkwardly-scrawled prose below.

Choose better. Find some peace.

Every day, it's a challenge. Here's the deep stuff.

Gains are hard. Change is hard.

Be it something "simple" like the gym. Plateaus and desire for instant gratification and results dissuades people from continuing their resolutions.

Or, at work - the extra hours, projects or perhaps the uncomfortable conversation about aspirations or where the system needs improvement or management styles need tweaking.

Or, in your relationships of any type, difficult conversations are oftentimes sublimated (diving back into the career, housework or a stated goal). The consequences of that discussion may be dire and the fracture irreparable. 

Change is hard, but necessary to grow. You learn by building on previously established truths in math and science. But in other subjects, you may need to tear down preconceived notions or perhaps things you'd be told or taught by a trusted source. Experiences and time reveal new paths of knowledge. And hopefully that peace you sought at the outset ...

Today's "Devil's Jukebox" accompaniment is It Don't Come Easy from Richard Starkey - aka, Ringo Starr. You know the words. Sing it loud. 

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One, two,

One, two, three, four!

It don't come easy

You know it don't come easy

It don't come easy

You know it don't come easy

Got to pay your dues if you wanna sing the blues

And you know it don't come easy

You don't have to shout or leap about

You can even play them easy

Open up your heart, let's come together

Use a little love

And we will make it work out better

I don't ask for much, I only want your trust

And you know it don't come easy

And this love of mine keeps growing all the time

And you know it don't come easy

Peace, remember peace is how we make it

Here within your reach

If you're big enough to take it

Got to pay your dues if you wanna sing the blues

And you know it don't come easy

You don't have to shout or leap about

You can even play them easy

Peace, remember peace is how we make it

Here within your reach

If you're big enough to take it

I don't ask for much, I only want your trust

And you know it don't come easy

And this love of mine keeps growing all the time

And you know it don't come easy

"What's my name?" Ringo!

"What's my name?" Ringo!

"Just in case anybody forgot"

Put It There - June 15

I was going through some of our archived photos from the past year to toss up a large Mixtiles order. Make memories and make sure you can see where you've been, ya know?

And in the midst of a flurry of early summer '19 photos, I came across a few shots from our experience at Dodger Stadium last July. Normally a space for 60,000 blue-clad Dodgers fans with a ton of kids in the mix, the stadium was packed with a crowd that skewed older.

The signs in left and right fields under the 76 logo read:

"Paul McCartney

 Welcome Back"

I went through the photos, including a shot of the concession options and pricing that I texted to get order while standing on line. My favorite part of the pre-show experience was the music pumping through the speakers as smiling fans streamed into the ballpark. The excitement palpable, people were standing in line and singing along to the McCartney and Wings songs pumping through the speakers. One in particular struck me. Its simple instrumentation cut through the noise and hustle and bustle of the commerce underway -- -"T-Shirts!" "Programs!"

The plucking of the guitar strings was the unmistakable (to my ears, anyway) opening of "Put It There." The short song from McCartney's 1989 album "Flowers In The Dirt" has since become a Sing-A-Long song when my jukebox get rolling on longer car expeditions. Here, it brought a smile and more of that communal, spiritual feel that I've written of in previous posts here. It'll be a recurring theme, no doubt.

The setlist for the concert didn't include this gem, but we were treated to a mix of 38 classics and new songs, ranging from quick 2-minute Beatles classics, Wings, solo work and visits from Joe Walsh and Ringo Starr. You had the obligatory "phone as flashlights" sections and plenty of singing. My kids knew the words to a bunch of the songs, impressing a number of people in our section.

Oh, and which picture prompted the memory? It was the fireworks and strings of "Live and Let Die." The picture was blurry, but it conjured a beautiful image in my mind. It was a flawless night for the band and the environment.

And one I wish I'd done better and could do again. We'll save that for another time.

Sing along if you know the words.

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Give me your hand I'd like to shake it
I want to show you I'm your friend.
You'll understand if I can make it clear
It's all that matters in the end.

Put it there if it weighs a ton,
That's what the father said to his younger son.
I don't care if it weighs a ton,
As long as you and I are here, put it there.
Long as you and I are here, put it there.

If there's a fight I'd like to fix it,
I hate to see things go so wrong.
The darkest night and all it's mixed emotions,
Is getting lighter sing a song.

Put it there if it weighs a ton,
That's what the father said to his younger son.
I don't care if it weighs a ton,
As long as you and I are here, put it there.
Long as you and I are here, put it there.

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Put It There - Paul McCartney Video