In case you haven’t seen this yet on You Tube, this almost made me want to get married … ;>)

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-94JhLEiN0

And thanks, Alison, for the quote – and Boltgirl and Alice, for sharing your opinions.  (Lack of Phillies’ love is nothing new in my little world … but, as any Cubs fan knows very well, too … we carry on in spite of any/everything!)

As for the Athletica and the Red Stars … I haven’t followed either team THAT closely, but having seen the Red Stars in Cambridge on the 15th, I’d have to say that one of the things that I noticed was the stretches of time that it was possible to forget that Carli Lloyd was on the field.  It has seemed that her head wasn’t in the game for much of this season … hard to know why.

I also looked at the team-by-team stats on the WPS site and one thing that stood out for me was the big difference in fouls committed vs. fouls suffered by the Red Stars.  Don’t know how the opposition is scoring on them, but it looks like they are giving up a lot of free kicks.  Finally, Caroline Jonsson started out on a tear this spring … but her goals-against average looks high compared to Hope Solo (for example) … so I’m thinking that may have contributed to some lost ground. (Of note – she tops the list of league leaders in goals against and in saves – so I guess we need to look at the Red Stars’ defense – why so much action for Caroline??)

As for the Athletica … they just seem to me a team that took sometime to gel.  Eniola Aluko shines on the offensive end (among the top players in both goals and assists), and Hope is Hope.  Doesn’t hurt to have Lori Chalupny on the field, either (my vote for the next Kristine Lilly).

The Athletica host FC Gold Pride on Sunday in a match that could clinch a play-off berth for the Athletica … and could eliminate FC Gold Pride from contention.  The game is at 6PM ET and will be televised on FSC.

Meanwhile, the Breakers face off against their nemesis (so far) Sky Blue FC.  A Breakers win coupled with a Freedom loss would clinch a playoff berth for the B’s.  And the Red Stars face the Freedom at 3PM on Sunday.  The game will be webcast (thanks Red Stars).  I’ll be rooting for ya!!  (Looks like Kate Markgraf will be at the game … nice to read her recent blog post!)

On the WNBA front, the All Stars have gathered at Mohegan Sun in CT and are practicing up for ther face-off today at 3:30 PM ET (televised on ABC).  Speaking of the All Stars, I see that DT is in the mix, in spite of her serious lapse of judgment (and Mechelle Voepel’s eloquent piece on the subject).  I do hope she can turn things around for herself … not sure an All Star call-up makes sense right now, though.  It smacks too much of a financially-driven decision … after all, they’re playing in Connecticut!

Here’s a good piece by Jeff Jacobs (Hartford Courant) about Taurasi and her situation … which won’t be resolved til she goes back to court later this summer.  Jeff thinks she should play, but as he says …

… my opinion should not for a minute diminish the gravity of her blunder. A blood draw by Phoenix police showed she was driving with a 0.17 blood-alcohol level, more than twice the legal limit. Taurasi is listed at 172 pounds, so according to a Blood Alcohol Content Calculator, that would mean seven or eight drinks in two hours. Leaving a nightclub for the Phoenician Hotel following a game against the Seattle Storm, she never should have put the key in the ignition of her 2006 Land Rover.

That’s a lot of alcohol … FAST.

Anyway – time to sign off here.  News of the world will have to wait ’til tomorrow (if then).  Palin says good-bye at a picnic tomorrow (would that that were actually true) … and her next steps are unknown.  Expect to see her on TV often, though.

Meanwhile, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. has taken up President Obama’s suggestion and said yes to a beer with Sgt. Crowley.   I like the direction this is taking, so long as:

• DT doesn’t join them and
• This doesn’t turn into any kind of a reality TV show.

Okay – onward!