Whether you've reached the end of your rope or merely the end of your week, welcome to Whitt's End:
*Apparently Dallas Cowboys owner and general manager Jerry Jones misunderstood. The NFL lockout hasn't yet commenced. While the Washington Redskins signed O.J.Atogwe and Bob Sanders landed with the San Diego Chargers, the Cowboys have done exactly nothing to upgrade a safety position that most of us believe needs help. Murmur.
*I know we're barely a week into Texas Rangers' spring training, but is anyone else already worried about new third baseman Adrian Beltre? A calf he strained running on a treadmill is worse than originally thought.
*Stretches of 17-1 are rare in the NBA. Your Dallas Mavericks have two of them this season, from Nov. 20-Dec. 27 and their current run. And to think, those feats have merely thrown them into the conversation about possibly competing with the Lakers and Spurs in the West.
*Delicious last night to watch the Miami Heat squander a 24-point lead in a home loss to the Orlando Magic. And it was Chris Bosh and LeBron James who took -- and missed -- potential game-tying 3-pointers.
*So I made it through countless trips driving from McKinney to Dallas and all around the metroplex during Super Bowl XLV on the ice and snow. Then, on a dumb dare, I smashed my car last weekend. As I was punching in the access code to a friend's gated community, my buddy dared me to try and sneak in before the gate closed behind a departing car. I made it, but not after my left side kissed a concrete pole. Me = Idiot.
*Hot.
*Not.
*I thought TCU fans were better than this. Their football team is.
*So, in exchange for $1 million tax-free cash, would you agree to eat nothing but vegetables for the rest of your life? I'm in. I think.
*I had a friend in high school who was a Mormon. Couldn't play basketball with us on Sundays and would never ever drink a Coke. So I wasn't shocked that BYU dismissed its third-leading scorer and best rebounder Brandon Davies for violating its honor code. I was surprised, however, when I found it was merely for premarital sex. Pretty sure I wouldn't last one day under those strict ridiculous provisions.
*Speaking of carbonated beverages, I'm not Catholic but I think I'll give them up for Lent after Fat Tuesday. Forty days without fizzle. Just because.
*You knew this day would come, just not this soon. And not in Las Vegas. But there's already a plan for a football stadium more expensive than Cowboys and Giants stadiums.
*Not sure where it's headed - if anywhere - but I'm hearing pretty ominous rumblings about the relationship between Nolan Ryan and Chuck Greenberg. Basically the Nolan-is-baseball/Chuck-is-business lines are getting blurred and it's causing some friction.
*Can't believe the Rodney King beating that spawned the L.A. riots was already 20 years ago. I remember being shocked and horrified. Unfortunately these days we're desensitized to such police brutality.
*If the NFL can extend the lockout deadline 24 hours, why not just push it back 24 days?
*Was wondering how fast a plane is going when it takes off. My initial guess was 250 mph. After some looking it up...160-ish. So if a car going 160 had wings, would it fly?
*Next week I'm on vacation, heading to Las Vegas for an annual guys' trip with some of my dorky friends from high school and even elementary school. Golf. Gambling. Girls. The works. Next time we virtually connect via blog I'll be at Rangers spring training in Surprise, Arizona. Enjoy the literary stylings of Sam Merten in my absence. And, of course, don't be a stranger.
