FATHER'S DAY

My son is 3 years old now, but somehow this still doesn't seem like my day. It still feels like a day reserved for much older men for whom there is no gift they need so you give them some piece of crap they neither need nor want hoping they understand what it means.

I suppose I am just in denial. In some ways it seems like yesterday I was swigging Wild Turkey like it was water and barely feeling bad about it the next day. But at the same time that young man living in UK dorms and dreaming of a career in sports television seems like a completely different person. Like some story I read or show that I saw.

It is probably time to get a grip on reality. It is time to quit seeing myself as the kid and come to accept the Diet-Pepsi drinking, Khakis wearing, cartoon watching, sidewalk chalk drawing Dad I have become. I make my living teaching about places I've never been and coaching a game I never could really play. But it feels right, so it is all good.

I know one thing, Father's Day does make you reflect on just how much your life has changed. I remember camping out all night on a Lexington sidewalk for tickets to a Garth Brooks concert and coming away from the window so excited to be in the lower level, and recently I was offered a chance to buy PlayHouse Disney LIVE! seats before they go on sale. I did it with my credit card over the internet and I think I was just as excited. We are in row A.

I remember going to King's Island and riding every roller coaster in the place as many times as I could get through line until they closed the park down. I took my son to the local amusement park on Friday. We rode two merry-go-rounds about five times each,sat on a ferris wheel that went up about 12 feet, and watched the Bugs Bunny show three times. I had a blast.

The weirdest part about being a Father is how to a good part of the world I have lost my identity other than in relation to my son. That became apparent the other day as I was leaving day care after dropping him off and a little girl on her way in stopped to say, "Hi Evan's Daddy."

And now I can confirm that there is another little one on the way. We are hoping for a girl. So that old guy I thought this day was for, hell, I guess it is me. So to any other Father who may see this, enjoy your day.

BO KNOWS the Sopranos Finale has been done to death this week but I feel the need for a few comments. I think people have to understand in general the population doesn't view paintings, or admire sculptures, or even read a damn book. In general we have rejected any form of art that requires thinking and discussion. So if our most popular medium, TV, wants to throw in something every once in awhile that requires these things I am OK with that. I would even encourage it. I have read a lot about the show this week and what makes me mad about the finale is how much brilliant work was overlooked because of the preoccupation with that last scene. I thought it felt a little rushed and the editing a little choppy but we learned a lot about these characters from some of these scenes and what was amazing was in many cases they didn't say a word. You have to love actors who can really say so much without speaking. My three favorite moments.

1. The look of disgust Carmela gives Tony as he goes into his sob story at the therapist's office.

2. The look of sadness Tony gives Meadow when he finds out her career choice was guided by the fact she felt he has been wronged in some way.

3. And my favorite moment was the look of relief on Tony's face when he realizes maybe in the end you can just forget all the shit you have done like Junior.

As for that final scene I think it is good they left it up to us. By not showing Tony's death they didn't cheat us out of the ending. They let us have the ending we wanted. Maybe it says something about us as people whether we need Tony to die for all his crimes or whether we want him somehow to survive all this and continue his life. Or maybe it's just a TV show.

BO KNOWS I seem to live in a nice quiet neighborhood. The kind of place where I always forget to close my garage and all my shit is still there in the morning. But the local news did a story this week about my area where they showed cops riding around five minutes from my house looking for drug dealers and prostitutes. Particularly scary was the fact they showed cops going into an apartment complex that I frequently entered in my pizza delivery days. I would go there at midnight with 300 dollars in my pocket. The cops now won't enter it alone at 2 in the afternoon. I think this is a problem.

BO KNOWS I can't remember a single thing I learned from Mr. Wizard, but I do remember watching him as a child and it was sad to hear that he is gone.

BO KNOWS I can't wait to see how this Randy Moss story plays out in New England. All the press this week was good, but it will be a good story either way. Either we are going to see one of the great career resurrections in football history or I am going to be able to joke on whoever in the fantasy football league thought we were going to and took this guy in the first round.

BO KNOWS the NBA Finals were boring. Bill Simmons of ESPN.com's Page 2 brought up a great point this week. For the few NBA fans left, and by the ratings there aren't many of us, the off-season player moves and the draft have become more interesting than the actual competition on the floor. I think this is a problem, but I have no clue how to fix it.

BO KNOWS pro athletes seem like nothing but self centered money grubbers these days but if you need a nice story about sports check out Rick Reilly's column on the last page of Sports Illustrated this week. I was going to link it for you but for some reason SI's most recent Reilly post is a column from May. That is stupid.

BO KNOWS those of you seeking motivation to diet should go to an amusement park and play the guess your weight game. Nothing brings how fat you are to reality quicker than watching that four foot red needle spin towards 250 on the face of that 20 foot scale. I got two things from the experience a plush snake and the desire to lose 60 pounds. I think I'll start tomorrow. Talk to you next week.