Monday, August 11, 2008

Thanks to everyone who came out to Arlington Park last Friday morning. I am constantly amazed by the caliber and loyalty of our fans. I think I like doing remote broadcasts in the morning better than in the afternoon. I’m not sure why, but it might have something to do with just getting up and getting right at it. Also, I think I’m going to have Stephanie pick Buzz up every morning. She seemed to put him in an excellent mood. I didn’t get a chance to see the Arlington Million on TV on Saturday, but I’m sure it came off without a hitch (hitch! ha!). If there had been a tragedy I’m sure it would have ended up on an endless loop on SportsCenter.

First we lose Bernie Mac and now Isaac Hayes. I know that celebrities die in threes, but I don’t think I’ve ever witnessed a trilogy of African American celebrity deaths. Maybe Morgan Freeman was supposed to die too. It would have been funny if the woman Morgan was driving home when he flipped her car were named Daisy. The odds of that happening have to be astronomical, even in the south, where many of the women are, in fact, named Daisy. If I were a Black celebrity, I would be extra careful until celebrity death number three is recorded. I am feeling especially worried about Isaac from The Love Boat and “Jimmy” J.J. Walker for some reason.

30 years ago today (8-11-78) Janet and I were married in a small shotgun ceremony in Detroit. It wasn’t really a shotgun ceremony, but that sounds so much cooler than a traditional Catholic wedding. It was the only way that I could get her to move to Chicago with me. Actually, due to some poor house-hunting skills on my part and an admonition from a North Shore realtor that we didn’t belong up there, we ended up in Bolingbrook. Coincidentally, the one and only Drew Peterson was patrolling the very same streets of Bolingbrook. We had no idea that he would become infamous one day. We weren’t even sure what would happen to me, but things have worked out famously. Happy 30th, Janet.