You gotta read this..DEEP

A man and his dog were walking along a road. The man was enjoying the scenery, when it suddenly occurred to him that he was dead.

 He remembered dying, and that the dog walking beside him had been dead for years. He wondered where the road was leading them. 
 

After a while, they came to a high, white stone wall along one side of the road. It looked like fine marble... At the top of a long hill, it was broken by a tall arch that glowed in the sunlight.


 When he was standing before it he saw a magnificent gate in the arch that looked like mother-of-pearl, and the street that led to the gate looked like pure gold. He and the dog walked toward the gate, and as he got closer, he saw a man at a desk to one side.
 When he was close enough, he called out, 'Excuse me, where are we?'

 
 
 'This is Heaven, sir,' the man answered.. 'Wow! Would you happen to have some water?' the man asked.




 Of course, sir. Come right in, and I'll have some ice water brought right up. 'The man gestured, and the gate began to open.
 
 
 
 
 'Can my friend,' gesturing toward his dog, 'come in, too?' the traveler asked.

 
 'I'm sorry, sir, but we don't accept pets.'

 
 
 
 The man thought a moment and then turned back toward the road and continued the way he had been going with his dog.
  
 After another long walk, and at the top of another long hill, he came to a dirt road leading through a farm gate that looked as if it had never been closed. There was no fence.
 
 
 
 As he approached the gate, he saw a man inside, leaning against a tree and reading a book.
 
 
 'Excuse me!' he called to the man. 'Do you have any water?' 
 
 
 'Yeah, sure, there's a pump over there, come on in.'
  
 'How about my friend here?' the traveler gestured to the dog..
  
 'There should be a bowl by the pump.'
 
 
 They went through the gate, and sure enough, there was an old-fashioned hand pump with a bowl beside it.
 
The traveler filled the water bowl and took a long drink himself, then he gave some to the dog.
 
 When they were full, he and the dog walked back toward the man who was standing by the tree.
 
 
 'What do you call this place?' the traveler asked.
 
 'This is Heaven,' he answered. 
 
 
 'Well, that's confusing,' the traveler said. 'The man down the road said that was Heaven, too.'
 
 
 'Oh, you mean the place with the gold street and pearly gates? Nope. That's hell.'
 
 'Doesn't it make you mad for them to use your name like that?'
 
 
 'No, we're just happy that they screen out the folks who would leave their best friends behind.'

Some Thoughts..

    I should not be awake right now, or at least while I'm awake i should be doing some studying for an Italian test tomorrow, but I'd rather write about sports. If your reading that's where you need to say HOLLA! But first things first I want to congratulate the Duke Blue Devils on their 4th National Championship in school history. I am well aware that there are a plethora of haters, sometimes including myself, however they got it done. The core of Scheyer, Zoubek, Smith, Thomas, and Kyle Singler are just a great thing to watch when they are on. The big 3 scores the points while Thomas and Zoubek, the two Jersey boys, do the dirty work. Kyle Singler is like the NCAA's version of Dirk Nowitzki. The guy just knows where the basket is and has an incredible touch, not to mention how he fills out a stat sheet night in and night out. Coach K once again did a remarkable job directing this orchestra throughout the season and tournament despite doubt from critics and fans.

    Butler should be commended with high praise with their effort throughout the season and especially tonight's game. At no time did they feel like the underdog going shot for shot with Duke for basically the entire affair. Gordon Heyward very nearly accomplished the unthinkable half court heave at the buzzer, however they did come up on the short end, but Butler did not do anything to lose this game. Both teams that squared off were deserving of a championship and Duke did what it needed to do. Butler has a bright future behind an incredibly talented young coach. Butler will be no longer a bracket-buster, but a mainstay with the big boys. 

    

    As for the Yankees, not quite what fans had in mind. You're up 5-1 in the 5th inning with CC Sabathia on the hill. Even in Fenway Park, you still have to think good things. However the Red Sox displayed their resilience as they have been known to do in April against the Yanks. A 9-7 win it was for the BoSox. The Yanks and Red Sox both have things to look at for good and for ill. The acquisitions of Mike Cameron and Marco Scutaro seem to look like good moves as they both had a hand in the win. It's been since the '04 season that the Red Sox have had a good shortstop (Orlando Cabrera) and they're hoping Scutaro can be that guy. Since Cabrera the Red Sox have tried Edgar Renteria who never fit in, Jed Lowrie who can never stay healthy, Nick Green who should never be a starting shortstop on a "contending" team, and Alex Gonzalez who is downright mediocre. With the absence of Jason Bay and a declining David Ortiz, guys like Youkilis, Pedroia, and Victor Martinez will need to pick up the slack, as they did Sunday night. You can bet the AL East will be won the hard way this year. 

    The Yankees bullpen sure didn't look as good as they planned. Chan Ho Park didn't know Pedroia can turn on an inside fastball, and Joba kept up his inconsistancy. It is way to early to put the microscope on things, however from what i got out of game 1 of 162, the bullpen could be a downfall. The Yankees proved they're going to score runs, and it was nice to see Granderson take one deep right away, as well as Gardner having multiple hits. For what's left of this first series, it surely favors Boston with matchups of Lester/Burnett and Lackey/Pettitte, however I think these ballgames will all be decided by the bullpens, and the Yanks should hit. There is a lot to look forward to. 

Overall, It's a Net Gain

Its been a hot minute, but now that the New York Yankees are ready to take on the world again, i'll be blogging nightly. First, a few thoughts about the New Jersey Nets. It has indeed been a rough season to say the least, but there has been plenty of good things for the positive man to think about. During the first 60 games of the season, there was no need to bother blogging about these Nets because it was a new night, same result. The Nets would lose interest in the game whether it was in the 2nd or 4th quarter, and then their own teammates. It was not a pleasure to watch. But now late in the season, something has clicked. The Nets have won 4 of their last 6 games moving the record to a still meek 11-65, but now have cleared their way out of a record of infamy. From people to expecting the Nets to finish with the worse record of all time, the Nets now have a shot to even finish better than the lowly 15-61 Minnesota Timberwolves. It would hurt their chances for the number one overall pick in the lottery for the upcoming draft, but it would be some type of feat to not finish with the worst record. Inspired basketball is what the Nets are playing and its a good thing to watch. The Nets have a lot to look forward to. They will be moving to the Prudential Center in Newark for the next 2 seasons, and then the stage will be set for them to move to the highly coveted Barclays Center which will be built in Brooklyn. A new owner who is expected to be approved by the league later this month by the name of Mikhail Prokhorov will no doubt about it, make a sizeable impact. This is the 39th richest man in the world who has already taken his Moscow team to the promise land twice, and he's good friends with Vladamir Putin, just throwing that out there. He's kind of a big deal, and the upcoming high profile free agents of the summer will take this man's phone call. With the likely chance of the number one draft pick which could be either Kentucky All-American point guard John Wall, or Ohio State swingman, player of the year Evan Turner, plus a couple good free agents, and a new coach, the Nets could be very well in business. Players like  power fowards Amar'e Stoudemire, Carlos Boozer, David Lee, as well as small forwards Al Harrington and Rudy Gay have all been quoted saying good things with interest about the Nets. The Nets also have 2 first round picks in the draft. Which originally looked like a season to forget now looks like what could possibly be a season to remember, a season that could potentially set the table for a huge turn around for this franchise. The Nets play the Wizards tonight at 6.