Confetti in Stumptown

Atlanta's radio broadcast of last night's Hawks-Blazers game in Kansas City was an eye opener for the ears. Just when we Stumptowners might buy into the hoo-haw that Portlanders, and Oregonians in general, are just too provincial to be taken seriously; that what we like, and what we get into, is purely small town, you get a glimpse that perhaps...just perhaps...we're special after all.

Atlanta's radio broadcaster, Steve Holman ("Voice of the Hawks"), who works without a sidekick, must have grown up calling dog-days-of-August, pastural baseball games. At first I thought his laid-back, low-key style was so that he wouldn't be heard by the quiet, neutral court crowd; to not be the only one raising his voice in that new KC arena. But no, that wasn't the case. This morning, you see, I heard clips of our own Brian Wheeler calling the same game. Holy razzle dazzle, rim breath! That guy can cause you to press the gas pedal too hard without knowing it. You'll be doing 70, when you thought you were driving 55. Brian, and his legendary predecessor, Bill Schonley, can surely load up on your theater of the mind. Who cares if the nosebleeders can hear them. I mean, they call the game in living color! And they belong to us.

Downtown Atlanta is something to behold. Now that is a big city. And the architecture! The difference between our little burg and Hotlanta is like comparing downtown Portland with Boring. But truth be known, as small town as Portland might be, we are indeed special. Just as there is more appeal to being in Santa's workshop than being in Cleveland, there is magic in Blazerville. Grant Napear and Jerry Reynolds, who have the TV call for the Sacramento Kings, raved about not only the size of the preseason crowd in the Rose Garden last week, but at the mania our fans have for this present Blazers squad. Their sentences started with, "In all my years....", and "I've never seen....". They even wished that their fans could one day be and feel the same way for the Kings. We were all, "Roo-dee!", and "Ohh-den!"

The oppositions' broadcasts did something else we're not hearing anymore. They each took considerable time encouraging fans to come out and see the "new look" Hawks/Kings. Such implorations, to us, seem so mid-decade now.

So, welcome to Candyland. Ain't ya glad you're here!