Long Day

At work, and in general. Although the latter part of the day was great because it involved me going, for free to the Steve Nash Charity All-Star game. I would recap what I did and saw there, but it's much easier just pasting what I posted on RaptorBlog.com:

I guess I was the only one sort-of disappointed by the game? (I know I shouldn't complain because a)I didn't exactly pay for the tickets and b)it was for charity, afterall). Here is what I experienced:

-I knew something was up when my buddy said the tickets were in Section 115, Row D. I heard of Row 13, Row 23, heck even Row 27, but not a Row D. Sure enough, I was three rows behind the net. It sure is good to have a best friend who works for Mercedes Benz whos employees apparently don't care about this game. I don't know how I always end up with kick-ass seats, but I won't question it
-I was briefly on camera on the big screen. I didn't know what to do. I just smiled, shook my head like a bobblehead, and felt like an idiot. That or Shawn Desmond.
-(Quasi?)-Celebrities I saw: Marlon Wayans. Okay, that's it. Well, there was also a Tracy Murray sighting, but I don't know if he counts as a celebrity. I know his cousin would certainly be popular if he was there. Does Jay Triano wearing clothes that made him look too old to be wearing clothes like that count?
-when I sat down at my seat (still buggin' because I couldn't believe how close I was), I saw Mark Strong and Gemini from Flow 93.5's morning rush. I yelled "GEM!" and got a wave hello and a smile. I then yelled "STRIZZY!" and got a peace sign from him. Nice people. Is it weird that I know what [i]radio[/i] personalities look like in real life? (Oh, and Gem has some crazy cellulite on her arms, like she lost a good fiddy pounds or something. No wonder she's on radio?)
-player introductions. No Allen Iverson and Ricky Davis, but not to worry as Mateen Cleaves and Janero Pargo are in. It's giving me flashbacks of the whole Derrick Dial/Ira Newble "all-star" appearances in VC's last game.
-on an aside, how do you think Mateen feels? Knowing he was only invited because they desperately needed someone to be the fifth player, and that he was only asked through MoPete's connection? My goodness, everytime he shot or tried to do something, I reminded my buddy, "And that's why he's not in the NBA." I've never seen seen something so, well, so awful. And remember, I saw Acie Earl play
-errr, yeah. Five players on on the West Team. Four quarters of play. I'm sure Nash, Johnson, Marion, and Gooden's coachs must be thrilled to see their players play a whole game that is not during the season. Couldn't they have gotten more Mateen-like players? Perhaps a Chris Jeffries here or a Rick Brunson there?
-on the East Team were Bosh, Rose (who was late for his introduction and didn't really play much throughout the game), Iggy, Charlie V, LessPete, Pargo, and the main attraction, Matt Bonner. Seriously, Bonner is that goofy white kid that loves the attention he gets (whether sarcastic or not) that wants to be everyone's friend who tries to make jokes that turn out more awkward than funny. Like when he tried to do his And 1 dribbling exhibition. Okay, that one [i]was[/i] funny. I love the guy, as long as he doesn't get overpaid.
-National Anthems: singing Oh Canada was a 13 year old Flow 93.5 talent search contest winner that reminded me of JoJo. I really, really feel old. Oh and the U.S. Anthem? None other than Divine "Overplayed Old School Love" Brown, who somehow managed to screw up the lyrics (said "Gallantly Displayed" twice). I wonder if she actually thought of practicing the song before she performed it. Heck, she could've even looked at the scoreboard at the lyrics and pretended it was karoke.
-speaking of practicing, the lady who introduced certain people, like Mark Strong and Gem and winners of promotions, could have at least practiced instead of looking at a piece of paper and screwing up her words. Looking at it reminded me of a horrible high school recital
-hey, speaking of high school recitals, the half-time shows? Yeah, it reminded me of that too.
-there were two NBA refs, wearing shorts. And Black Shoes and White Socks. If only you could see the visuals.
-oh right, the actual game: right from the start I knew it would be a game highlighting something else either than dunking (as VC has left the building). Nothing more exciting than watching assists be the highlights throughout the game! I think Joe Johnson is going to be a really good ball player
-as the guy said before, Iggy and CV missed a lot of dunks. I couldn't help but think that this was the Raps overall first pick. Yes, I know, it's just an exhibition game. I just can't wait for the season to start
-also as aforementioned (amazing alliteration!), Pargo had quite the dribbling exhibition. I also couldn't help but think Babcock is watching this game somewhere thinking Pargo is the answer to all the Raps PG woahs. I also couldn't help but think that there are going to be a lot of fans thinking Babcock should sign this guy right away, as they were up-in-arms last year as he let Shammond Williams go after a similar display.
-Nash did his whole soccer bit during the game, and everyone loved him. I mean, it was nice he put on this event and all, but damn, the amount of "Thank You Steve" and "We Love You Steve" moments throughout the game made me think Leo Rautins wrote the script to this long, drawn-out affair
-speaking of people kissing Nash's hoohoo, Cabbie was the worst (followed by Herbie, a close second). Can someone tell him that his "a-ha-a-ha I'm gonna pretend to act like a geeky loser even though y'all know I'm cool like dat" schtick isn't funny? Like when he pulled out a wig that was similar to Nash's hair and put it on his head. Too bad the joke was doomed for failure because Nash dissed him prior to for wearing a Boston Celtics hat
-saw Nash's wife and his twin girls and the faces Nash was making to them. (I know, all the guys want to know, "is she hot?" My answer is, "She's hot in a Major League Baseball Player's wife kind of way."
-oh yeah, we sat two rows ahead of Kardinal Official, who didn't clap when K-Os performed. I was gonna spread a rumour of beef Tupac-Biggie style, but who's gonna care? 16 people, including the artists themselves?
-okay, I know I sound bitter or something, but it wasn't all bad. Ways to make it better would've included of course adding more players (although it seems that NBA players have proven to be the most unreliable people around), having Jamal Magloire attend, heck having Vince Carter attend, having the JYD attend, having at least one sub for the West Team, having the Raptor attend, making it two halves instead of four quarters, having a host/narrator during the game, and inviting Shawn Marion strictly for dancing.

I left the game feeling good I didn't pay for the tickets, but bad thinking this charity game shouldn't be held next year without better player support and less "Steve Nash is God" support.
The best part of the night? The Korean Barbeque after the game. Sorry, I'm just being honest.

And yep, went for Korean BBQ with Ken and Walt and Nit. I really hope the policy works on them. I'm tired and I have to wake up early tomorrow and go with Sharon to Markham to talk about our future again. Yay!