Some Things Never Change...

...and other things do. Contemplating my return to Los Angeles, I read the sports pages today to get caught up, while eating lunch. Local sports here is pretty much a wasteland right now; die-hard fans are watching UT baseball but aside from that, there is no sports in East Tennessee in spring. So, I have recently learned :

1. The Clippers are in the NBA playoffs. The Lakers are not. Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant got along just fine this year, and maybe that was the problem. Oh, and maybe not having O'Neal on the team kind of hurts, too. I suppose I'll have to root for the Clippers against the Suns, but it looks like the Mavericks-Spurs series is a whole lot more interesting.

2. The Dodgers are near the basement of the National League West, because while there is decent pitching, the bats just aren't there. The media are, once again, watching Barry Bonds despite the fact that the Giants are in the basement. Who's leading the laughably weak NL West? Colorado. The San Diego Padres can't bring it against anyone but Los Angeles.

3. The "Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim" are being sued for giving away handbags to women but not men on Mother's Day. I'm all for gender equality and I generally like California's pro-active antidiscrimination law, but there is a point at which it becomes ridiculous.

4. In the Stanley Cup playoffs, all four top-seeded teams in the West were upset. In the East, all four top-seeded teams made it to the quarterfinals. The apparent best team in the NHL this year, the Ottawa Senators, are looking hard at being swept by the Buffalo Sabres in a series of one-point games. From L.A., the Mighty Ducks still represent; the Kings didn't make the cut this year.

5. There is still no professional football being played in Los Angeles, which remains a satellite market of the San Diego Chargers. That's fine with me; it makes it more likely I will be able to see Green Bay games broadcast on regular TV come the early autumn.