Mavs Mania

It's a disease, I swear. People who didn't grow up in Texas don't get it. Why do you care about sports teams when you don't really follow sports ... Don't ask me. I am not really a sports fan, but last night when I turned on the TV and Game 4 of the NBA finals was on ... Well, I stayed up to find out whether the Dallas Mavericks won Game 4 ... It reminded me of the time that we stayed up until 2 A.M. when the Dallas Stars won the Stanley Cup in 1999. By the way -- the Mavs won! The series is tied 2-2 ... and Dirk (their lead scorer) played with a temperature of 101; he sounded sick when they interviewed him after the game. That reminded me of Mike Modano of the Stars; when reporters asked if he wouldn't play after he broke a bone in his hand (or arm), he said he would ... They could strap him into his glove and he'd play. He would heal after they won the cup. (And they did!)

Marion Zimmer Bradley hated Texas because the lives of small Texas towns revolve around 3 things: God, family, and football (and not necessarily in that order). When she became a popular science fiction writer, she refused to come to Texas conventions until the 80s or 90s. Why -- bad memories, I suppose, although you'd think that she would realize that the people who go to SF cons are very different from the good ole boys back in a railway town in West Texas ... I suspect her experience would mirror that of an outsider stuck in the small town of Friday Night Lights.

Don't get me wrong. I don't hate sports ... and I understand how people find them fascinating, though I prefer other physical activities. Besides, an athletic scholarship will pay for much of my niece's college education. (I pray that the boyfriend thing doesn't interfere ... so many girls lose everything because they don't put books before boys.) I just prefer science fiction (and its related romantic cousins) and fantasy ... until the "Harry Potter" and "Twilight" series made reading fashionable to teens (well, teenaged girls), we fans were the geeks ... and series like "Big Bang Theory" reinforces that stereotype. Ah well, that's life. Over 12, 000 anime geeks and freaks and fans will descend on the Sheraton Hotel and its environs this weekend. So much to see and do ... and I get to sit behind a table and sell jewelry. With 5 of us there, we should get a turn to see panels and check out Dollakon 1. Sayonara, ya'll!