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LOUD PEP TALK HIDDEN MESSAGE: YOU’RE A LOSER

A pep talk has a particular place and time. It’s not normal conversation, it’s communication on steroids. Listening to a pep talk gives two distinct reactions: Get hyped up, or tune out. A third response is understanding what all the noise is about. This is the one that takes special experiences. Like what, you ask?

CANCER TALK: ANOTHER VOICE IN WINNING THE HEALTH GAME

Cancer talk changes depending on who does the talking. Between one sort of cancer and the next, between terminal and curable, the talk changes. When it comes from a public figure, it can get loud, or disappear. Coach Ron Rivera of the NFL team in Washington D.C. adds his voice to the cancer talk.

LILLARD TIME? CHECK THE CLOCK

Lillard time happens when you join Wilt Chamberlain as the only other NBA player to log three sixty point games in one season. It’s happened enough for Kobe Bryant competitiveness comparisons. And he’s the best thing to happen to the Portland Trail Blazers in every way. Is that saying too much? Not for Blazer fans.

ROBIN RICHARDS TO THE RESCUE

Robin Richards top row center. Image via teamusa.org I grew up in a small Oregon town that had one big team, the wrestling team. And I wasn’t a wrestler, not yet. Instead, I played ball, the usual ball. And not very well, which made me question if I’d ever be more than washed up at […]

YOUTH SPORTS, THE FIRST IMPRESSION LASTS A LIFETIME

If the question is ever asked, “Why bother with youth sports,” there’s an easy answer. When you overhear someone slamming organized athletics, do you have a response? If not, why not? Try this on for size.

BASKETBALL COURT: A DATE WITH HISTORY FROM THE DRIVEWAY

A basketball court is today’s proving ground for American youth. Like other kids of a certain generation, though, baseball was my first proving ground. After I proved I wasn’t very good at it, something about a weak arm and slow legs, the basketball court replaced the diamond. Instead of going to a lumpy field, I […]

PREEMPTIVE CONVERSATION: SORRY, I WASN’T LISTENING

When is the best time for a Preemptive Conversation? Married men have different answers than singles, from both sides of the fence: Her side, and yer side.

EMPATHY ADDICTION: IT HURTS WHEN I FEEL

Is empathy addiction a call to action every time you feel something so intensely you have to do something? “That could’ve been me; I’ll make sure it never happens again.”

WRESTLING WITH THE DEVIL, A SUN DEVIL, AND WINNING

Great wrestling stories are journeys, internally and externally. From The Odyssey, to Tom Sawyer, to Saving Private Ryan, a journey works to transport readers into the lives and times of those written about. Tonya Russo Hamilton joins the ranks of those who capture time and place and deliver a story flowing with streams of emotion.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL FINAL: HOW ABOUT THOSE OREGON DUCKS

The Oregon Ducks didn’t play in the college football finals last night. Neither did Oklahoma. Today the final rankings came out. Oregon was #5 in the polls that matter, #7 in a network poll where the people probably didn’t stay awake for PAC12 games, and #6 in a poll of experts last updateD in early […]