Like a famished Grizzly freshly awaken from his winter slumber I return to you noble readers of WBPT. Apologies for my absence will do no good, for the time that has passed is simply an errant nightmare, you all deserve better. I aim to deliver, the time to post has arrived. Your studious first mate has been kriss-krossing this great land in search of that daily activity which gives us all a sense of importance while simultaneously filling our checking accounts with the fruits of our labor. I, like your Captain OB, am unemployed and that my friends is a much busier occupation than you may imagine. Just last week I left my home in the South Carolina low-country to pursue professions in the great Rocky Mountains, Denver specifically, one of my favorite cities in the US. While that venture went without a hire it did not pass idly by as many leads were developed and, if I choose, an opportunity to relocate would certainly bear fruit. After a short stint back in SC I am off later this week to the South’s King City, the land of my birth, Atlanta in search of more opportunities. But enough about me, it is too long and depressing a story lately to comprehend or even really care about. I have decided to make this an epic post, one that will encompass the tremendous occurrences in sports, music, and culture in the last few days and weeks. I hope this effort will make up for my absence, but you must read on to find out.
Rawr
OB will surely hate me for doing this, since he has been a card-carrying member of the Duke-haters Club ever since I’ve known him. But how ’bout them Blue Devils? The most absurd looking of the number 1 seeds actually became better when 7’1″ bearded-paint-dweller Brian Zoubek became a starter after the loss to Maryland late in the regular season. The fighting Kryzewskis dominated the ACC tournament and were all set to make a run at the title. I personally had the boys from Durham losing in the Elite 8 to Villanova, but when the Wildcats bowed out early to cinderella St. Mary’s it made Duke’s path that much easier. The Dukies fought off Baylor to earn their spot in the Final Four and played their best game of the year against West Virginia to make it to the Championship. I personally loved this Championship game. It was a typical David vs. Goliath sure but what I loved the most about it was that of the 10 starting basketball players from Duke and Butler, half of them were white boys. Duke’s fantastically pale trio of Scheyer, Singler, and Zoubek proved too much for the hometown Butler Bulldogs and Coach K won his 4th Title at Duke in what was one of the better Championship games in recent memory. A big Duke high-five to all my fellow frontrunners who have loved the Blue Devils since the days of Hurley and Hill.
That's What I Call Diversity
Well the end of college basketball means there must be something to fill this massive sports void in my soul. There must be some sport that encompasses all that is and was good in America. Something that brings people together, spanning thousands of miles and defines a common thread among generations. What could it be?
Thank you Terrance Mann, I mean James Earl Jones. Baseball. God I love it. There is nothing more perpetually American than baseball. Nothing makes me realize that summer is imminent more than baseball. With opening day happening yesterday and my hometown Braves ripping the absolute dog shit out of the Cubs I couldn’t be more excited about this season. It is Bobby Cox’s last season as Braves manager and the boys from the Ted have a legitimate shot at making the playoffs. As a boy I attended a World Series game in 1992 when Atlanta played Toronto, my all-time favorite player is Chipper Jones (UFag bias and Hooters babies aside, he’s a baller), and when David Justice hit that solo-shot to win the 1995 World Series it immediately became my greatest sports memory. I love the Braves and I love baseball. This season is going to be exciting to watch. As 20 year old, number 1 prospect Jason Heyward hit a 3-run bomb with his first major league swing he ushered in a new era of Braves baseball, one that hopefully will send Bobby Cox out with a title of some kind. Here’s to $2 tickets, $4 hot dogs, and $6 domestic beers.
Feels Good Man
Speaking of the Rites of Spring, there is another one this week. It is the Jim Nantz jizz-fest aka the Masters. This year I hope that mainstream America holds their collective obsession of the philanderer elsewhere as the Masters is one of the last remaining utterly pure sporting events. That is the last I will speak of that. If you are a true sports fan, then Augusta National Golf should be at the very top of your Sports Bucket List. I myself have been 3 times to the tournament itself (practice rounds are for suckers) and usually can be found walking around with my jaw somewhere around my ankles, or propped on a hillside with a $1.50 beer. It is truly a sight to behold, one of Golf’s many meccas, but the US’s only true Golf Capital. Augusta in early April is a fantastically beautiful place, azaleas and dogwoods blooming, sorostitutes from nearby UGA and South Carolina clad in stunning sundresses and skirts that do as the wind bids them, and the sweet sounds of titanium on plastic. I hope to everything that this weekend is more about the other men on the course, those that are actually competing for a green jacket, because in a world filled with distractions it would be nice to just watch some guys play some amazing golf at a truly amazing place.
Amen Corner - Augusta National Golf Club
Alright enough sports talk for today. There are a couple of movie trailers running on most cable networks right now that have caught my attention. Not for the movies themselves but for who is in them. Death at a Funeral and The Losers both star a certain up and coming actress who has appeared in Avatar, Star Trek, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Drumline. Zoe Saldana is a New Jersey born, Dominican/Puerto Rican, actress and she has me wanting moar. This chick is unreal. I mean I first took notice when she was lookin’ supa-fine opposite Nick “Wil-n-Out” Cannon in 2002′s supersmash Drumline, and since then I have been keeping tabs on her. Death at a Funeral‘s cast alone will probably have me redboxing it in a few months (doesn’t hurt that it’s rated R, might catch it in theaters), The Losers looks like a quality summer shoot-em-up and there is no lack of great character names so I will be catching this one when it comes out (plus Zoe looks great in the trailer). This chick is about to blow up, I guess this is the Woman version of Music MANday, as we at WBPT salute Ms. Saldana and all she undertakes in the future.
Looked me dead in the face, asked cash or credit...
Now on to another Goddess named Zoe. Or I guess, Zooey. In this section of Epic Post I will be discussing 3 of my favorite albums to come out in 2010, the first of which is She & Him – Volume Two. For those that don’t know, She & Him is comprised of musical renaissance man M. Ward and actress/singer/blue-eyed sex kitten Zooey Deschanel. Simply put, if you like Zooey’s voice then buy this album. It is heads and tails above Volume One, her lyrics are simple and meaningful and his guitar bleeds through every track as they mix together to make a 50′s style folk masterpiece. See and hear the first single from the album below, if you dig it I suggest you purchase the rest.
Favorite album number two of 2010 is the debut album from a band called Local Natives, an LA based group who describe their sound as “afropop-influenced guitars with hyperactive drumming and hooky three-part harmonies” and if that doesn’t make you want to take a listen, then maybe the video below will (very cool). This is another must have album. The Local Natives are kind of a mixture of the Arcade Fire and Vampire weekend but that doesn’t really do them justice, these guys are definitely a group to keep an eye on.
Favorite album number three is also from a new group on the scene. Mumford & Sons released their freshman effort Sigh No More back in October 2009 over in the UK and it was just released over here in the states. This album is the shit. If you’re a fan of stringy, loud, folky groups like the Avett Brothers and Frightened Rabbit then this is the album for you. Probably the best all-around album I’ve heard since Phoenix’s Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix. Seriously buy this album, download it, rip it, get it somehow. You won’t regret it.
Alright friends, I’m all posted out. But before I leave you I just wanted to give you a heads up on some great music coming out in May. Indie music phenomenon The National will release their album High Violet on May 11, below is a clip of them performing a track from that effort on the Jimmy Fallon Show. Below that is Charleston’s favorite local sons (ok, besides Hootie) and their first ever video of any kind from the upcoming album Infinite Arms that comes out on May 18th.
Looking forward to this summer, the music, the sports, the drinks, and the broads. Thanks for your patience. Stay tuned.
-Neil
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