Today is not only the 4th but I am celebrating a different type of independence as I now am the sole occupant of a new apartment here in Springfield. Thanks so much to everyone in my family for helping me yesterday and hauling all my stuff into my apartment. Oh, and to everyone out there, I have an open door policy, so after about the first week or so and I’m finished unpacking, stop in anytime.

I’m off to grab some essentials for the apartment, get ready for ILA and visit some folks. Be well and enjoy the 4th!

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EDIT: Portland and Seattle media outlets are abuzz with this news, and KING-TV in Seattle is getting some great minute-by-minute reaction that I feel encompasses the sentiments of the entire Northwest about losing the Sonics.

As a Portland Trail Blazers fan and a man who once lived 180 miles south of the wonderful city of Seattle, thereby rooting for the SuperSonics as my “second favorite team” (I always called them that since I was a kid), I feel awful at this present moment in time.

At 7 PM Central Time today, it was announced that the City of Seattle and the Sonics ownership group settled their trial before the judge was ready to rule on it, and basically the terms were that the Sonics will leave town in exchange for Sonics owner Clay Bennett forking over $75 million to the city, and the Sonic name and history to remain in Seattle.

The SuperSonics are no more, at least for the foreseeable future. The team is moving to Oklahoma City in time for the ‘08-’09 NBA season. This is the ultimate travesty, besides the war in Iraq.

I fully plan on driving to OKC, about 4 1/2 hours to my southwest, and wearing a Sonic jersey and holding up a sign that says “CLAY BENNETT, YOU HAVE MY BLOOD ON YOUR HANDS.” I’ll seriously do it too, on behalf of all the Sonic fans in Seattle, the state of Washington and beyond who have suffered one final push and twist of the knife into their hearts.

I remember the 1996 NBA Playoffs and the series with the Jazz. I remember Kemp, Payton, Hawkins, McMillan, Perkins, Schrempf, Johnson, Scheffler, Wingate, Askew and that team. I remember Kemp dominating the NBA Finals but still Jordan’s team came out on top. I loved the Sonics because they were semi-local and cheered them on secondarily to my beloved Blazers for years.

Another saddening thought is that the Blazers/Sonics rivalry is now dead. Portland vs. Seattle has always been a big draw in the Northwest and now it will not live on…I can say no more about this.

Sports is trivial in the grand scheme of things but this feels like one of my best friends has just packed up and moved out of the neighborhood, never to return. I don’t know how else to explain it. I saw it coming but still it is saddening nonetheless. I can’t imagine how it would feel to have followed the Sonics throughout their history and now have the team snatched right out from underneath.

As a Portland fan, I will not consider it “bandwagon” in any way if any Seattle fan wishes to become a Blazermaniac. I for one accept all my Sonic brothers in arms, as the Portland Trail Blazers for a time will be the Northwest’s Team.

Let us all root on the Blazers over the many seasons to come, pray the NBA brings basketball back to Seattle in some shape or form and in the meantime, celebrate the titles the Blazers will win — and that current Sonic fans and future Blazer converts will relish as well.

I can’t think of any Christianized insults to hurl at Clay Bennett, so Clay if you read this, just please know I pray for your soul.

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Most of the reason I’m scared has to do with oil prices rising, and our nation’s drug addiction-like dependence on a resource that is guaranteed to run out sooner than we all think.

I am thoroughly blessed to have a job in which I can easily deal with the cost increases of life’s basic necessities. I don’t have a family to support, and I live rather modestly by my estimation. I just want enough money to be able to live comfortably, yet at the same time money that I could be putting away toward my retirement is going instead to support companies who have to stay afloat because of oil prices.

Conversely, my heart goes out to those who have to make life-altering decisions based on the price of gas. Companies are shutting down left and right, and from a consumer’s perspective, some people cannot afford food and basic necessities. Some people can’t even afford to go to work, and it just snowballs from there. This is the present reality.

Yeah, things are getting worse than we could have imagined, but we still have a lot of good to look at. Even in the oil crisis, I see blessings that abound — and quite frankly, you’d have to be blind not to see them every day.

Our country has some of the most beautiful scenery of the planet, some of the nicest people you’d ever want to meet, and despite people’s opinion of the war, people generally support their troops that are fighting overseas. We’re still able to worship whatever being we choose; we can say whatever we want whenever we want (for the most part); and I don’t know of anyone yet that has been attacked by foot soldiers, had books burned and have been forced to leave the country.

America still is pretty great — yeah, we’re in a funk right now but I think that the Lord’s hand is still upon us despite all our shortcomings, and we can continue to be great. This nation is full of awesome people doing awesome things, and we’d be remiss to not focus on the good in a time in which many are doing without.

The hand of the Lord has been upon our country for 232 years, a relatively small amount of time compared to many other established nations on this planet. Nations that have been around longer than we have, have seen things much worse through their history — our current problems are bumps in the road compared to places like England (the Crusades come to mind), Germany (their country has nearly been decimated on many occasions), and Italy (remember the Roman Empire?).

So this July 4th, let’s all focus on what good our nation has to offer — turn off the TV and don’t watch the news, and instead fill your life with joy and happiness if only for a day. Go celebrate our nation’s independence, go shoot off some fireworks and I’ll provide the depth charges.

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So pretty much I emulated a young man named James Catusco, who bills himself as the worst basketball player ever (as evidenced by the video above). Today I shot 0-11 from the field in a simple pickup game and had two shots blocked. It was pathetic.

Yes, I counted every shot I missed. It made me more upset and more upset until I finally kicked a bleacher and felt better.

Final stat line for the day for Chris Brewer, #25, Power Forward for the Blue team:

0-11 FG, 0 PTS, 8 REB, 2 BLK, 5 TO, SUCKS BADLY

I feel it, next time I’ll burn y’all for 50 points, 30 rebounds and 30 blocked shots. I don’t know how that’s possible in a game that only goes to 21 — I don’t know how Chuck Norris kicks babies in the face from afar either, but he still does it.

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Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha. This is great.

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Enjoy it, and Happy Monday!

SNAP INTO A SLIM JIM.

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She has no reason to, in her opinion, because she remembers the time a few years ago when I returned from a deep-sea fishing trip in Portugal (I was stationed there) and I had fabricated a hilarious story to our good friend Paul Symonds about a supposed indigenous species of fish found only in Portugal — known as plotkyfish. The guy bought it hook, line and sinker (sorry, Paully) and my mom doesn’t want to be in the same boat.

Well Mom, relax. The marula fruit is REAL.

Photo evidence:

Hilarious video evidence times deux (taken from Jamie Uys’ film Animals are Beautiful People) exists here and here.

Love you, Mom.

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Thank you to whomever made the original Obama campaign poster, and to my fledgling Photoshop skills.

Just remember, stay true to your convictions this November.

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In fact Firefall should be taking place right now, but since part of the field is flooded, all events have been cancelled until 4 PM. Event organizers will issue another update at 3 — presumably to call the whole thing off. I don’t want to be a pessimist, but look at this radar image as of 1:46 PM and you tell me if this is good firework weather.

Not only are Firefall folks praying for a little divine intervention, but I’m sure the folks of James River Assembly are praying as well for this liquid to vaporize and turn into Holy Ghost rain for I Love America. Even though their events are a few days off, I’m sure the Springfield Underground site that ILA is held on is turning into marshland.

I feel bad for folks heading up both events…hopefully they’ll be able to at least do the fireworks for Firefall tonight, and hopefully ILA won’t get washed out and it can dry up somewhat in time.

Thanks Lord, we’ve been praying and fasting for good weather and this isn’t what we meant. We really appreciate it, NOT REALLY.

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