Stormy Sunday

I've been meaning to go to a Seattle Storm game for a few years now.  I tried repeatedly to get my brother to agree to go with me but he stood firmly behind his male chauvinism with regard to sports and refused.  So when the Storm reached the WNBA Finals again this year I decided to go it alone.  At today's game the majority of the fans were indeed women and children but I was far from the only male in the crowd.  In fact, NBA legend Bill Russell sat courtside next to Fred Brown.  Lenny Wilkens was there, too, along with current NBA players Nate Robinson, Jeff Green, and Jamal Crawford.

The game itself was great but a bit over-officiated in my opinion.  The refs basically decided that Swin Cash wouldn't have an impact in this game and that's the thing I've always disliked about basketball—let the players decide who wins!  I've heard people say that if you want to see good fundamental basketball you should watch women play because the men's game is overly physical and often a dunkfest.  I tend to agree.  There were a lot of misplays in this game but there were also a lot of really impressive jump shots and defensive plays.  The Storm ended up winning 79-77 on a Sue Bird jumper with less than three seconds remaining.  2010 WNBA MVP Lauren Jackson led the scoring with 26 points.

Maybe after all these years I finally saw a championship team in Seattle.  We'll know in a few more days...

The 40,000 Mile Club

It's a little hard to tell from the picture but my Suzuki SV650 and I crossed the 40,000 mile threshold this morning.  I reached the milestone passing through Bothell on northbound I-405 only a short distance from the exit where I had my only real motorcycle accident early last year.  Almost all of those miles are from commuting although I have taken it to Sequim (twice), Leavenworth, and Richland.  Based on those experiences I wouldn't say it's the kind of bike you ride for long distances but it's perfect for 30 or so miles to-and-from work.

The bike is still running well but it is definitely showing its age (I guess you could say the same for me ;).  The tires are starting to crack so they need to be replaced.  I think the brake pads are probably due, too.  There's also the overheating problem I've had for a couple years.  The fan never comes on so either there's something wrong with it or the thermostat has gone bad—I've done surprisingly well to avoid traffic jams in hot weather that would put me in jeopardy of overheating, though.  I haven't had it serviced this year so it is also overdue for an oil change and tune-up.  Hopefully I've got 6-8 weeks of riding left in 2010 and then I'll figure out what to do.