the most optimistic way to look at the celtics right now

since i left the garden monday night i haven't really watched tv or read much online, i've tried to avoid sports news.  i'm not really sure what people are saying, but my guess is the general consensus is that miami will close it out tonight.  that may well be the case, but here's the best argument i can make for why boston may still have a chance.  one thing i have said before is that this celtics team plays their best when they are counted out.  i can't see them not putting up a huge effort tonight.  if they can somehow pull out a win in miami, there is no reson to think they couldn't win game 6 back in boston.  and if it went to a game 7 they would have all the momentum, and lebron would be having nightmares about the pressure of that game.  so there you go.  it's not what i think will happen, but there's a chance. 

bad chicken

so dominos has been airing this commercial and promoting their new "improved" chicken like crazy: 

unfortunately for them, they overlooked 2 important things:

1. after you rate the chicken on the box, then what do you do with it?  save it on your mantle?  it's not a pre-paid envelope you can mail back to them, it's a cardboard box.

2. it stinks.  the pieces are tiny and soggy and basically the same thing as regular fast food chicken nuggets.

i mushed the lakers

last week i wrote this: http://lucidsportsfan.blogspot.com/2011/05/worst-case-scenario.html  basically i said that despite the fact that LA would be going for it's record 18th title, i would root for them vs. miami in the finals because that's how much i despise lebron.  well, the lakers responded to my once in a lifetime show of support by not winning another game and getting swept by dallas.  wow, what happened to them?  that game last night was pathetic, they didn't even show up.  their surprisingly early exit does support another blog i wrote last month though: http://lucidsportsfan.blogspot.com/2011/04/this-is-most-wide-open-nba-playoffs-in.html

rajon rondo is not a normal human being

i was working during the game, it was on tv at the bar but there was no volume and i wasn't really able to watch.  but i perked up when i heard a guy say "rondo just broke his arm."  i watched the replay and was instantly sick to my stomach.  just like that the season was over.  and then somehow it wasn't. 

it's 5:30 am and i just finished watching the game on my dvr.  i have way too many thoughts running through my head to write about right now.  the fact that he played the whole 4th quarter with one arm blows my mind.  i'm not sure how the heat let that happen, it really shouldn't be possible for a guy to be effective in an nba game using only one hand.  i have no idea what he'll be able to do on monday, but for now it's a series again.

my guaranteed way to win at sports gambling

there was a guy sitting at my bar watching the bruins/flyers game last night who apparently bet $150 on the under, which was set at +/- 5.5 total goals.  with 5 minutes left it was 2-1, and he was looking pretty good.  then boston scored, 3-1.  then philly pulled the goalie, and boston scored again, 4-1.  then i watched this guy completely freak out as philly continued to play without a goalie, even though they were down by 3 with a minute left.  the bruins got another empty net goal, making it 5-1, 6 total goals, he loses.  the whole thing was pretty amusing to watch.

which brings me to my point: i know how to win at sports gambling, but it only works in a limited capacity.  you have to bet just on who wins, and only on games where you care a lot about the outcome.  but the strategy is simple.  you bet against your team, and you bet the amount of money you would be willing to pay for them to win.  for example, i'd be willing to pay $100 to guarantee the celtics beat miami tonight.  so if i bet $100 on the heat, it's win win.  either my team wins and i'm happy, or i win the bet as a nice consolation prize.  unfortunately for me i don't care enough about winning the money to actually bet.

oh yeah, and as a side note, how did philly ever even get this far with such terrible goaltending?

i think it's ok to walk in front of people taking pictures

on my way to work i often walk past the bull and finch pub, the original "cheers."  now that the weather is nice there is almost always somebody standing in front of the sign, and another person standing on the sidewalk taking their picture (or if i go the other way through the common i walk past the "make way for ducklings" statues, and it's the same situation).  rather than wait, i just keep walking right in between them like i don't even notice.  this is definitely NOT what most people do.  the common assumption is that it's rude, but i don't think it is.  first, everybody uses digital cameras now, so if i mess up the picture they can just take another one 10 seconds later.  it's not like it's gonna waste film or prints or anything.  and second, i'm the one walking on the sidewalk with somewhere to go.  they are the ones leisurely standing around taking pictures.  i'm pretty sure i have the right of way.  if they were standing in the street instead of the sidewalk, do you think cars would politely stop and wait?

also, i realize this is the second blog i have written recently about tourists taking pictures on my walk to work, http://lucidsportsfan.blogspot.com/2011/04/are-there-no-squirrels-in-europe.html but i think it's ok cause the main point of each was totally different.

biz markie in extra innings

that was one wacky game at fenway last night.  a no hitter for 6 innings, pre and post rain delay.  a crazy rally in the 9th that should have won the game but for bad base running.  and an almost walkoff in the 12th that confused eck and orsillo to no end.  i don't think too many people were still watching with me till 2:45 am, but i absolutely love the few hundred fans who stayed in the park.  when youk came to bat in the 10th and the 12th you could clearly hear them singing "yooouuuuk, you got what i need, but you say he's just a friend..."

12 pm thursday: barstool sports just wrote about this, but for the record i did 9 hours earlier.