Honorable Mention

I haven't given up hope.

I know.

Deep down in my soul, I can feel Ken Griffey, Junior's tormented mind as I write this.

He too, knows.

He's long envisioned his epic return to the Emerald City. The hero-like welcome. The old friends. Announcer Tom Hutler booming out his name for all to cheer. Naughty by Nature. The media swirl. The House that Griffey Built.

The sphere of his youth beckons. His heart is pulling him back to the Northwest.

Griffey's visions, however, also include wondering how his family members would be impacted if he moved to the other side of the country. He wonders what it would be like to fail in Seattle while his supporting cast is missing theirs.

With Griffey, it's always been family first. Always. He and father Ken, Sr. and brother Craig defined the baseball family.

Family first. Whether it was winter workouts or contract negotiations, family always came first for Junior.

His departure to Cincinnati?

For family.

All the homers on Mother's Day and Father's Day and family birthdays?

For family.

His heart tugs him to Atlanta.

The man is choosing his fate. Indeed, it is not a life-or-death choice, but his decision has the power to make his wife's day. It could also disappoint thousands of Mariners fans and even more baseball fans across the country.

Junior, your wife will forgive you, she has to.

I don't know if the fair-weather bunch that populates the peanut galleries and Internet forums of the Seattle sports scene would.

We've been abandoned by the Sonics. The Seahawks missed the playoffs. The Husky football squad? Skunked.

We need that storybook ending to be the beginning of a new era of Seattle sports. We need our boy-king to return a man wanting no more than to get a chance to play for his people.

We need that smile.

A friend of mine said to me one time while we were golfing, "Shoot arrows into the clouds and they'll go away."

It worked.

I'm doing everything I can with no clouds to actually see. I'm mentally pulling back the bow and launching off arrows to Griffey's thoughts of playing in Atlanta.

The Mariners aren't the Braves, they are much more. Baseball is about the ring. Of course it's about winning, but it's also about nostalgia.

In Seattle, it's about a teenager that came to the show, joined his father and went on to blast the Mariners out of the Kingdome and onto the baseball map. Way back when, The Kid was the best in the game. He had his feisty, standoffish side and his inviting smile.

In my eyes, the story will end. It will be OK no matter what Junior chooses, but for my own personal sake, my own personal greed, I hope he chooses Seattle.

Finding Nate Robinson on Youtube's Birthday

I missed the dunk contest.

Between acquiring huge, pink, amazing smelling tiger lilies and taking care of the everyday business of being the world's best boyfriend, I had my hands full.

Well, I may not be the world's best boyfriend, but shucks, I try to be.

Yoda would say, "There is no try, only do," to which I would reply, "I am doing oh wise, green creature."

I didn't even remember this was NBA All-Star Weekend. My love and I hit the gym for 'bring in your significant other so we can lock them into a contract day,' and then we together for the first time ventured into a Pho joint for the highly touted noodle soup.

I recommend it, but soup never really fills me up. Get extra vegetables. Careful with the Sriracha.

To chop a long tale short, I didn't even watch ESPN this weekend. Busy is the man who loves. Or maybe it's just me. Sometimes, I am rather beaver-like.

Anyhow, the dunk contest.

I had to log on to youtube to see the dunks. Coincidentally, this has only been possible since four years ago today.

Happy birthday youtube. Man, the site kicks butt. You can find anything on it. Want to see some funny stuff? Search for Chris Farley, the late funny man also born on this day. Farley was some good clean fun. Sort of.

But, back to the dunks.

Nate Robinson is the short man's hero. I am a short man.

Holy cow, the man can leap! Wish I had those ups. Not my hero, but I'm sayin'!

While I do think the whole Superman/Kryptonite was a total setup, that didn't really dampen the performance. Nate can fly. The green shoes? Super dope.

Go Nate. Now, if only New York could get rolling (for Nate's sake). You gotta love the hometown alumni.

Speaking of the hometown, Nate isn't the only baller representin'. Jamal Crawford, Brandon Roy, Martell Webster, Spencer Hawes, and others are showing the rain can grow some NBA players, while the college ranks are filled with Seattlites.

Today I saw the future.

I had the opportunity to mill around, eat snacks and drink G2 while the best high school players in the area (from bottom to top in height) had a photo session and interviews at the P-I.

These kids have no idea how lucky they are. So young, so talented. Future so wide open. Watch out for Josh Smith world. Peyton Siva makes plays. The rest of the squad isn't a drop off.

It's a sign that Washington basketball as a whole is taking off. The Pac-10 is a tough conference (thanks to many Seattle-area players) and guys are getting serious looks from major D1 programs. Seattle U is actually one of them and they're actually not too bad.

Go Seattle. Who needs the Thunder anyhow?

In closing, go youtube seattle high school basketball players and check out some sick plays. When you're finished, find Farley and laugh a little.

Or laugh a lot. Life is short. So am I. So is Nate.

Nate can dunk...so I can dunk? Wait a sec!