Category > Poetry In The Motion
Friday felt like a weekend in early March. It was gray and rainy, and Illini Basketball buzz vibrated almost audibly around Chambana. Swagger came to town. It might stay for a while. Millionaire Olympic Gold Medalist Deron Williams rolled into town on Thursday. He worked out with the team, and some recruits. We, the media, were not invited because the recruits participated in pick-up games. (NCAA rules are weird.) Deron was back at The Ubben on Friday, and this time …
Al and Dom went to China, and all I got was this lousy exclusive. But in fact, they're great photos. It's much easier to write half-truths about Illinois basketball when the set-up material is so strong.Accompanying a team of collegians coached by Illini Director of Basketball Operations Sean Harrington, Al and Dom played eight games in China, and tied only one of them. (At the end of regulation, everyone felt they had seen enough basketball.) Each day took them to …
Reading Week at Champaign's Barkstall Elementary School concluded last Friday with Celebrity Reader Day. Rumor has it that Matt Dillon showed up to read The Outsiders to the fifth graders. But so far I'm the only one to have access to that rumor. It's also rumored that Illini athletes provided the brunt of the scholarship. This should surprise no one, as the teams spend about a million hours catering to the needs of the community.It may be merely a rumor …
The Eastern Washington University Eagles have landed. They’ve come to crap in the nest of our favorite local college basketball team. Can they? Maybe. Probably not. The 2008–09 Illinois Fightling Illini Men’s Basketball team begins its season tonight with an advantage over the last two Illini squads: They’ve been practicing offense.
The poltergeist inhabiting Jamar Smith’s lanky frame looks a lot like the freshman phenom who never missed a shot. But looks are deceiving. That Jamar died, a long time ago. It’s hard for us, his friends, fans, admirers to accept that the younger, vital Jamar is gone, forever. Wraiths, demons, vampires often affect onlookers this way — because they physically resemble the persons they once were. But if we got today’s Jamar on the court, he would disappoint. He would …
“What I didn’t want to do, and made clear to CBS, is to have any of that take attention away from the games or players — it isn’t about Billy Packer.” False modesty? That’s up to you to decide. “They had to move in a direction for their future. And it made a lot of sense to me. This is good for both parties.” Could this possibly be true? Well, even a paid court side seat for the Final Four …
It’s a slow week for the casual basketball observer. July may be the most important month in the business, but major happenings affect only those in the business. The rest of us, barring a sudden interest in Jungian philosophy, or shaving a few pounds off our fat asses, are forced to find non-news to grumble about. I gather the biggest non-story still chafing the yokels, possibly even disrupting the Klan meetings of rural southern Indiana regards Bruce Weber’s offhand comment …
Efrem Winters may, or may not be the all-time career leader in the often under reported Illinois Men’s Basketball impressive leg muscles category. These days, it’s hard to tell. You can’t actually see the athletes’ legs anymore. Since the mid-90s, college basketball has endured the thrall of a restrictive, totalitarian regime which requires athletes to hide their bodies in baggy, bulky, flowing robes.
John Calipari sits on a beach somewhere, frenetically thumbing a Blackberry; oblivious to the crashing waves, the gulls, the delightful salty breeze. The summer recruiting season opened this weekend. Family, friends and ice cold bottles of Corona don’t stand a chance of getting Cal’s attention. Last week, he was forbidden from calling recruits, because the first half of June is a period when the NCAA wants kids to do other things besides talking to coaches — final exams, perhaps. …
In our culture, there’s enormous pressure to buy new things. Q: Where does that pressure come from? A: People who sell new things. Keeping up with the latest trends, keeping up with the Joneses, keeping current. What’s in style this season? No one wants to look like a square. Out with the old and in with the new. It doesn’t matter that you already have everything you need. We all know someone who routinely throws out an entire houseful of …
Most Recent Sports Comments
Oh, by the way, the “Champaign County YMCA” no longer exists. The official name is now the “Stephens Family YMCA” (the website has not been updated, but check out the latest program guide). And no, it’s not just the name of the building. It’s the name of the organization.
Very inspired Photochops as well….
Props on the new YMCA dig. I think it’s a terrible spot for it, but then again, I’m not well-to-do and I’m not willing to drive 15 minutes at $4/gallon to exercise for an hour.
http://motorcycle-intelligence.com/do-loud-pipes-save-lives/1119/ Are you a smoker, too? I feel like I’m just getting recycled arguments.
http://www.motorcyclecruiser.com/streetsurvival/dangerous_motorcycle_safety_myths/index.html “Myth 2: Loud Pipes Save Lives”
Yes, I also love the idea of the downtown! However, the “turds” that ride Harley’s or any other motorcycle have the right to ride their motorcycles regardless of the “loudness” anywhere they want. They are buying gas, hence they are contributing to the motor fuel tax that…
Yup, this was the year I realized there’s no way this is my last CU marathon, even though I’m gradumacating next week.Where else am I gonna get cheered on by 70+ year old heart-of-gold volunteers who smile at me so genuinely I could believe I’m their granddaughter?…
I always have a good, but disappointed, laugh when marathon time creeps up and I start seeing posts on the WCIA Facebook page lamenting race day and how difficult it is to get around town that day. One this year said, “can’t they just go run in…
Reminds me of Total Football (soccer) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Total_Football
Most Popular Sports Articles (60 days)
- Signing through nine innings
- Groce: Point blank
- Spring race season
- Politickin’: John Groce and Don Gerard work the beer crowd
- Catching up with Illini baseball
- The Calm after the Storm
- Matt Bollant saves Illini athletics, Day 1
- Groce loses first staffer
- Training for Gold: An Olympic blog
- Fourth Illinois Marathon = Nearly Ideal
Most Recent Comments
As a liberal conservative, and a person who favors taxes & services ... and also a sense of proportion; I savor the comic potential that still exists in this comments section. I’m pretty sure we can goad more anti-government rhetoric from confirmed progressives and government employees. If…
Did the Crave Truck get a permit to park in city metered spots and city right of way? Or did they just get a permit? The city clerk’s office seems to be a suspect here, but it’s not clear they did anything wrong. Did the Crave Truck…
High-profile whining. AKA Lobbying.
it’s quite choice. looking forward to seeing how it and its patronage grow and develop over the course of the year. could be a neat little ecosystem.
“It was at this point, before he started his business, that working with city employees should’ve raised red flags…” But they didn’t because: 1) The City Clerk’s office originally mis-interpreted the rules, or are indeed re-interpreting them. 2) Champaign’s brick-n-mortar merchants hadn’t yet started whining about The Crave Truck.
Super cool! Excellent track, Excellent band.
Looking forward to trying this place!
I’m in the middle (or the beginning or end, depending on how you look at it) of re-reading Slaughterhouse Five. What a great companion column.
Get yours early. The Rave’s CD will be available at Exile and at The C-U Flea on Saturday. C-U Flea details here: http://www.smilepolitely.com/news/sp_radio_podcast_c-u_flea_arrives/
I don’t know about Gerard and a random police sargeant. My (mild) outrage is based on this: “...he worked closely with Champaign City Clerk Marilyn Banks to make sure he was licensed properly as a transient food peddler, filling out the necessary paperwork and paying a $225…
Local Yocal pretty much nails it here. I suspect there will be merchants who oppose food trucks because they arguably don’t pay their fair share to locate their trucks in high traffic (high rent) areas. The food trucks take away business from rent payers, park in city…
Oh nice! I’d totally vote for Matt Campbell!
“Smile Politely sports writer announces candidacy for city government.”
I also got to visit Big Grove Tavern during the soft open and definitely enjoyed the pork belly the most of all the dishes I sampled. The cheesy grits and the vinegary pickled vegetables were a perfect compliment to the rich pork belly.
The Alan Partridge lookalike on the right in the first small photo has nothing to condescend to anyone about. AH HA!
Snell and the little Hitlers of the neighborhood association need to chill out. Legitimate businesses should have the freedom to exist without having to endure the slings and arrows of ignorant and misguided opposition.
represent, Matt.
Yeah, I’d agree that Transporter Room 3 is the worst house venue I’ve ever seen.
Food trucks are the start-up, small businesses of the future for those unable to afford real estate. No surprise, that merchants who pay rent, utilities, and maintenance on a property would despise the traveling competition. Or developers who build more empty retail spaces would want to close…
Not so much far-right Tea Party as a balanced, moderate viewpoint between letting businesses succeed and protecting society with reasonable regulations. In spite of what the city reps are saying, the interpretation of policy on this issue certainly has changed. Letting a business start up under one…
Facebook
Twitter
Full Site
@Dan - Wow. Unfortunately, I have to refrain from further comment due to a previous employment relationship. But with that brief context you might be able to imagine possible comments or responses I could have.