ALISSA BIGELOW, I AM SORRY. I DID NOT KNOW

 

Throwback Thursday floods Facebook with pictures of the past, most of them showing
styles that are out of style and big smiles that seem to last forever. When I was browsing
through the news feed yesterday, I noticed a picture of a former co-worker, face beaming
while embracing a friend.

The caption was written by her friend: "Good times with Alissa. I miss her everyday.
I know she's smiling up there."

My heart sank and jaw hit the floor. The words "smiling up there." could only mean
one thing. I quickly went to her Facebook page and saw other phrases that confirmed
what I was thinking.

"Lord knows how many angels are celebrating up there with you."

"I picture you eating red velvet cake and smiling down on us." 

I couldn't believe it. I quickly Googled her name and up came the headline in the Boston
Globe that drove a stake into my heart.

                                 Alissa Bigelow, 38; hosted cooking show, taught yoga.

Sweet, beautiful, funny, and bubbly Alissa Bigelow was gone at the age of 38. She was
tiny in size but big in personality. We worked together at NESN in Boston where she
was loved by everybody. She edited many of the features I wrote, produced, and reported
on. We spent countless hours in the editing bay laughing hysterically while trying to
make deadline every single night.

She always had a great story to tell and it often came before finishing up our work. One
night Alissa failed to complete a three-minute feature another reporter had done on the
Celtics and I was forced to ad-lib as an anchor for three-minutes, which in television
seems like three hours. But how could I get mad at Alissa, she was the sweetest girl
in the building.

Through our long hours in the editing bay, we discovered we had more in common
than the place we worked. She was from Darien, CT., which bordered my hometown
of New Canaan. They are virtually the same type of town with the same type of people.
There's only a border there to separate the BMW's from the Mercedes'. She also
graduated from the University of Southern California where my sister attended.

As I continued to read her obituary, I saw the words I feared searing. "She took her
own life."

Alissa Bigalow seemed to have it all. She was smart, beautiful, funny, and as bubbly
as the champagne uncorked on New Year's Eve. Alissa also had a precious young
daughter that is a carbon copy of her. Her then-husband Ned, is a man's man who looks
like something on the cover of "Men's Health" magazine.

Behind that pretty face and effervescent smile was the type of pain that became too
unbearable to endure. We are all shocked when a person so young with a brilliant
personality takes their own life, but we can't see the inferno and chaos that tears
a person up inside. We see the mile-wide smile and figure everything is all
right.

It wasn't for Alissa.

She just couldn't overcome her personal demons.

In this day and age with social media and instant information, I was surprised I
missed the news of her passing. The NESN family is a strong one that is connected
strongly on Facebook and nobody had mentioned it. I asked several former co-workers
and they didn't know about Alissa's passing, either.

The date of the article on Alissa's death said November 2013.

How did we all miss it? I feel terribly that I couldn't say good-bye to her.

I do know this: I will miss her dearly. She is the type of person you meet once
and remember her forever.

Alissa Bigelow was a wonderful person. I know she is up there free from her demons,
smiling down on all us.  Alissa, I just wish you knew how much you were truly loved.

A TRUE CHAMPION NAMED JOSH

 

I've never met this kid named Josh, but feel like I've known him forever. I've seen his
soulful eyes and mile-wide grin on Facebook a lot over the years and every time I do,
a smile washes over my face and I get a big chuckle. It's a great way to start the day.

Josh is the 7-year-old son of Kim Agostino, a former co-worker of mine at NESN, a
wonderland of sports with a collection of talented, wonderful, and pretty darn cool people.
Mom is extremely proud of her son and is always posting pictures of her little bundle of
pure joy on the mother of all social media networks.

There is Josh with Wally the Green Monster. There he is with the Red Sox are number
1 foam-finger. The cool kid is pictured with unbridled joy after getting an autograph from
his favorite player, Mike Trout.

When I see pictures of Josh, I see a kid just being a kid, loving life and enjoying the
incredible experiences and opportunities his mother has provided him with. The special
bond between mother and son jumps off the page and can melt a glacier in a
matter of seconds.

Last week, his mother was as proud as she's ever been of her beautiful child when he
got to share the sacred grounds of Fenway Park with his favorite team, the Boston Red
Sox. There was Josh pictured side-by-side with Dustin Pedroia and Brock Holt standing
at attention for the national anthem.

On a perfect sun-splashed afternoon, the little kid was a giant on the field, the envy of
millions of kids across Red Sox nation. Josh was also the center of attention for "Autism
Awareness Day", which cast a feel-good spell over Fenway Park.

Josh is autistic.

To see Josh and his mother at Fenway Park on this glorious spring afternoon was
truly heartwarming. This special bond mother and son have formed was on display in
the cathedral of baseball as they tried to spread the message about autism.

About 1.5% of children in the United States (one in 68) are diagnosed with autism as
of 2014^[update], a 30% increase from one in 88 in 2012.

I don't pretend to know everything about autism, but I realize there are big challenges
to deal with. Every day is not a rosy one for parent or child. To see Kim and Josh smile
and battle through the tough times and try to do something for others, is truly heartwarming
and inspirational.

To see Kim shower Josh with all these opportunities and give him these wonderful
experiences is a beautiful thing. To see Josh smiling from ear-to-ear, whether it be
on Facebook or television is a great thing, too. Mom and son are true champions and
most of all, an amazing team.

I often contemplate deleting my Facebook account, but that would mean missing the
smile of Josh and everything great that mother and son stand for. I won't do it.

What a team!

Go Josh!. Go Kim!

THE PATRIOTS ARE GOING TO THE SUPER BOWL

As soon as I found out Tom Brady was suspended for four games and the New England
Patriots were heavily fined by Roger Goodell, the NFL's prince of clowns, I checked to
see where the 2015 Super Bowl is being played. The Patriots will be in it and I wanted to
make reservations early.

San Francisco? Nice. It will make for  one helluva story.

That's right, you read correctly. The New England Patriots will represent the AFC (again) in
Super Bowl 50. What makes the story even better, Brady was raised in the Bay Area and
idolized Joe Montana, the Hall of Fame quarterback with four Super Bowl rings---just like
Brady.

Why do I think the Patriots will get to the Super Bowl with Brady forced to sit out the
first quarter of the season? Simple. No team in the history of sports plays the "Us against the
World" card better than the Patriots under Bill Belichick. Nobody.

Remember when the Kansas City Chiefs throttled the Patriots in front of national audience
last year. Fans said Brady was done and Belichick couldn't draft, make trades, or sign
quality players. Trent Dilfer of ESPN proclaimed the Patriots "just aren't good anymore."

Yeah, how'd that turn out?

No team uses controversy to fuel them like the Patriots. Remember what happened after
Eric Mangini turned in his mentor for spying after the first game of the 2007 season? Yeah,
they embarrassed just about every team in the NFL on the way to the Super Bowl. They
were  an Asante Samuel interception drop and an out-of-this world catch by David Tyree
from going a perfect 19-0.

Remember when the Patriots lost Brady in the first game of the 2006 season to a knee
injury? Yeah, they went 11-5 with the immortal Matt Cassell under center. Cassell didn't
start a single-game in his career at USC, but Belichick coached him up and the Patriots
did fine.

The Patriots don't use injuries, not even to Brady, as an excuse. They plan, prepare, and
execute better than any team in the league. Oh, I heard that "nobody cheats like them
either," under your breath, but you can stick it and save it.

Hello, Jimmy Garappolo. The former signal-caller out of Eastern Illinos is now the
current QB of the Patriots.  Many people felt  he was a reach as a second-round
pick in 2013 simply because the so-called experts felt Brady had a few good years
left before retiring. How those experts looking now? A stroke of genius by Belichick
again. Oh, sure, nobody expected Brady to be out for cheating, but you can bet
Garappolo will be ready to step in.

Under the Belichick, the Patriots have won 72 percent of its games, been to the
Super Bowl six times, winning four of them. Now, he has more fuel to fire up
his team. The world thinks the Patriots are the biggest cheaters in sports, Don Shula
mocks them, and they are the butt of a lot of late night television jokes.

Good luck with that NFL, the Patriots are on another mission.

Brady will be back to face the Indianapolis Colts in week 5. Yes, that's the same team that
turned the Patriots in for taking a little air out of the footballs. Brady had steam coming
out of his ears when his own fans questioned his ability after the Kansas City massacre,
you can bet fire will be coming out of his nostrils after the football world questions
his character and credibility for the next five months.

Man, I can't wait for the football season. This is going to be good---and painful
for opponents of the Patriots. I'm not saying they'll win the Super Bowl but I wouldn't
bet against them from getting there.

A SPECIAL GIFT ON MOTHER'S DAY

On the eve of Mother's Day, I produced a feature for the television station I work for called,
"What do moms really want for Mother's Day?" Flowers, chocolate, and a Hallmark card are
always nice, but I'm sure receiving them year-after-year can get, well, kind of old.

When I hit the street for my report, I found some interesting and entertaining answers from
mother's looking for something different on a day honoring them. "Sleep," said one woman
from Greenwich, CT. With three young kids to raise, it's easy to see why she'd opt for a
gift that can't be bought. Another woman I interviewed jokingly said (I think), all she wanted
was "a non-golfing playing husband." I did not pry for more information.

The best answer I received came from a mother of four who was looking a bit disheveled,
most likely the result of driving kids to lacrosse games, buying groceries, dealing with
allergies, folding laundry, cooking lunch, and cleaning the house---all in the past four hours.

With a microphone and camera in her face, I asked her what she really wanted for Mother's
Day. She paused, looked to the sky, and quickly returned to the subject and a red-light
blinking on the camera.

"What I'd really like is a letter from my kids saying how much I mean to them and the
things I do to make them happy," she said.

There was a pregnant pause that seemed nine months. That was special. No flowers, Godiva's,
a day at the spa, or even a few hours of extra sleep. Just a handwritten note. It brought a
smile to my face. That was heartfelt and I also knew it'd make my report all that much better.
And it did.

Monday morning, I woke up to a text from my sister, Kara, who lives on the west coast.
I get a lot of texts from her, most them accompanied with a picture of her fifth child, Emma.
Well, Emma is really a small Boston Terrier, but my sister treats her as if she bore the
dog herself. I kid with her about being obsessed with it, but we are all dog lovers and
I get it.

I opened the text and much to my surprise, it wasn't a picture of Emma, but rather a
letter from her daughter, Sophie. Sophie is 7-years-old going on 17. She is so sweet,
thoughtful, and most of all, independent. Sophie makes coffee every morning and brings
it upstairs to mom and dad in bed. She is a pure bundle of joy, void of temper tantrums
and selfishness. Sophie zoomed past the terrible two's and always wakes up and goes to
bed with a big smile on her face.

On Mother's Day, Sophie put a mile-wide grin on the face of her mother. Without a
nudge from her father or anyone else, Sophie penned a letter that will stay on the
refridgerator door for a long, long time.

 A "Thank You" note from a beautiful little girl with a big heart, melting the one of
her mother. How sweet, kind, and thoughtful. Five days before her mother's special day,
she authored this short but very special letter.

The "kisses" the "hugs" and a stand alone, "I love my mom."  How great is this? Sophie
had a little trouble with the last line, "you bey me cut clows", (you buy me cute clothes)
but it makes the note all that more special

I can now see why the woman I interviewed pined for just a note from her kids on Mother's
Day. No store-bought Hallwark card, no cheesy chocolates, no flowers that will be dead
and gone in four days.

A note like this lasts a lifetime. Words like these get engrained in a mother's heart, mind,
and soul forever. I was moved by this. I know my sister was, too. That is love.

TOM BRADY AND THE WORDS THAT WILL HAUNT HIM FOREVER

One thing about players and coaches in the NFL, they never forget. They never forget who
throws a cheap shot on the field or says something about them off it. The phrase 'bulletin board
material' started in the NFL and it will remain there forever. But players and teams don't really
need a newspaper article pinned to a slab of cork to motivate or remind them of something,
they have it engrained in the long-term memory part of their brains.

This is exactly what landed Tom Brady in the center of the "DeflageGate" scandal which is something that, undoubtedly, wipes the shine off his golden boy image and mostly likely
will get him suspended by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell this week.

To understand the scope of this saga, you have to go back to May 1, 2012 when Baltimore
Ravens head coach said in an interview with ProFootballTalk.com, the three Super Bowl
titles won were tainted because of the SpyGate scandal in 2007.

“Even the thing in New England, no matter whether those things had any impact on whether
they won their championships or not, they got asterisks now," Harbaugh said."it’s been
stained. So to me, it’s never worth it. You’ve got to figure out ways to use the rules to your advantage.”

The statement was not only eye-raising because it came from the mouth of a current NFL
coach, but for the fact Harbaugh got his job with the Ravens in big part because of Bill
Belichick, who made a personal call to the team's owner on behalf of Harbaugh recommending
him for the job. Saying the Patriots' titles were tainted was seen as a huge slap in the
face to Belichick and one Tom Brady never forgot. He also remembered the line, "you've
got to figure out ways to use the rules to your advantage" so eloquently stated by Harbaugh.

So, after the Patriots beat the Ravens in the playoffs this season, Brady took a moment during
his post-game press conference and did something that was so out of character for the Patriots
QB: he fired a shot at Harbaugh publically. In response to the Ravens being confused by a
Patriots formation,  claiming it was illegal, Brady said the Ravens should "study the rule book
and figure it out."

Study the rule book and figure it out.

Those eight words will haunt Brady forever.

Brady was taking a dig at Harbaugh who said the Patriots' titles were tainted and also was
sticking up for Belichick, whom he is fiercely loyal to. He felt Harbaugh was being incredibly
disloyal to a man who helped him get his first NFL coaching job and never forgot it.

Harbaugh didn't forget Brady's comment, either. After the Patriots beat the Ravens they
moved on to play the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC Championship. The Ravens have
strong, strong ties to the Colts. Chuck Pagano, the head coach of the Colts, was the
defensive coordinator with the Ravens prior to getting the job in Indianapolis.

Before the AFC Championship game, the Colts alerted the NFL  the Patriots may
be using deflated footballs. Many people within the league believe the Colts were tipped
off by Harbaugh after Brady made the comment pointed at him, saying the Ravens
should "study the rule book and figure it out".

Study the rule book and figure it out.

Brady has long been known to be psycho about the feel of the footballs he uses during
the games. He and Peyton Manning went to the commissioner in 2006 in an effort to
let quarterbacks break the balls in during the week leading up to the game. They got
the green light and the NFL pretty much changed the rules for them.

Somewhere along the line, the Ravens and Harbaugh got wind of Brady liking underinflated
balls. Just like in any business or life for that matter, people talk, rumors gets started,
stories get spread, and information collected.

The Ravens  just played the Patriots in the playoffs and lost two 14-point leads to
them. During the course of the game, they may have discovered what they had heard
to be true about Brady's underinflated balls

Getting beaten by the Patriots on the field was one thing, embarrassed by Tom Brady
off it, was quite another. Turns out it was something Harbaugh wouldn't forget.

The goods on Brady and the DeflateGate scandal are out with the league set to suspend
its golden boy quarterback who had it all until he uttered the words that will haunt
him forever: "Study the rule book and figure it out."

In that Harbaugh interview gave ProFootballTalk.com in 2012, the coach of the Ravens
also said something that turned out to be really prophetic.

“If you’re cheating, in the end, you’re going to get discredited,” Harbaugh said. “It’s just
 not worth it.”

Tom Brady should've remembered that line by Harbaugh as much as he engrained the
one about the Patriots' titles being tainted in his head.

Tom, it just wasn't worth it.

SHELLEY SMITH IS BALD AND BEAUTIFUL

 

Employees at ESPN usually make headlines in one of two ways: saying something
dumb or doing something even dumber. See Stephen A. Smith, Steve Phillips, Sean
Salisbury, Dana Jacobsen, Tony Kornheiser, Hannah Storm, Jalen Rose, Ray Lewis,
and of course, the not-so-lovely and foul-mouth reporter, Britt McHenry.

ESPN is not only the world-wide leader in sports, but boorish behavior as well, and
they certainly earned both reputations.

However, when I read about the return of Shelly Smith to the network, it felt like a big
stick of deodorant wiped out a bit of the stench created by the inappropriate comments
and behavior of the aforementioned crew in Bristol. For those who are still employed
there, anyway.

Smith, a longtime reporter who covers stories for ESPN on the west coast, took a leave
of absence six months ago to battle breast cancer. After months of radiation treatment
Smith was back on the air and cancer-free. She fought a courageous battle that so many
others have lost and was back working the job she loved.

But there was something missing in Smith's return: her long flowing red hair. It was
gone, every single strand of it. The radiation treatments made the red mane, which had
been Smith's most recognizable feature, disappear.

Smith showed up for her appearance on "NFL Live" straight bald. No wig, no short cut,
or even a little stubble. Smith was as bald as Kojak and boy, did it look beautiful

Oh, sure, Smith isn't the first celebrity to appear on television without her hair. Joan
Lunden was on the "Today" show and the cover of "People" magazine all bald and
proud. ABC's Robin Roberts lost her hair to cancer treatments as well. But this was
something different. Smith was not reporting on herself but someone else. She was
just doing her job and she didn't  care one iota of how she looked without her hair.

 

She looked fabulous to me.

The bald head was her badge of courage and a message to all of us that cancer, which
has a pretty powerful record, can indeed, be beaten. Smith's bald head is also a statement
that her talent and performance is far more important than the drop-dead gorgeous looks
that enables a woman to get a sideline job on a network to ask a coach, "What adjustments
do you have to make at halftime?"

Seeing Smith back on television gave ESPN something it desperately needed after the bad
PR it received from McHenry's episode of "Brittany gone wild." This was a feel good
story not orchestrated or sensationalized.

Thank you, Shelley Smith, you are a courageous and brave soul.

BRYAN BRENNAN: THE HUMAN SELFIE

I've never met Bryan Brennan but we somehow became Facebook friends recently. He says
he's a videographer for NESN, the goliath of regional sports networks, but judging by the
amount of selfies he takes, it's hard to imagine him having any time to shoot anything in
the theatre of Boston sports.

Brennan is the king of the selfie, the master of the 'me' shot, and the ultimate specialist of
the singular photo. Compared to Brennan, Kim Kardashian is an amateur when it comes to
selfies. He has a true talent for taking them and one thing is certain, he has more fun
than anybody else when he does, which is around eight per hour every hour.

In August of last year, TIME magazine proclaimed Mortao Maotor to be the selfie queen
as the woman from Bangkok has posted 12,000 selfies on Instragram, or half as many as
Brennan has plastered all over Facebook.

Forget about King or Queen, Brennan is the human selfie.

Brennan can't leave home without his iPhone nor curb his obsession with selfies.

"It's a gift," Brennan told SportsRip in-between snapping selfies. "Mookie Betts was born
with a great name. I was blessed with a great eye and a thumb to snap a million selfies."

Brennan's selfies are not of the garden variety and it's obvious that the veteran videographer
doesn't take himself too seriously, if at all. That is, unless, he's scratching his nose to show
off his World Series ring to the stunning blonde across the bar whom Brennan has no shot
of landing even if he gift-wrapped the bling to her.

Brennan, who graduated magna cum laude from the Connecticut School of Broadcasting and
is expected to have a building named after him in one of the 18 states the school operates
in and rips people off, takes selfies to an award-winning level every single day.

"Yes, there was a lot of trial and error at first," admitted the talented videographer. "But
then something just clicked. It became natural and I got better and better as my addiction
to selfies went deeper and deeper."

I've often posted on his Facebook photos that NESN should give him his own show to
shoot, edit, and host. Brennan is far funnier than anyone that showed up on NESN's
"Comedy All-Stars" and more colorful than any of those hard-up chowder heads from
the North Shore who appeared in "Sox Appeal", the award-winning dating game that
was filmed during games at Fenway Park.

In his true humble fashion, Brennan responded, "You don't think I know that?"

NESN executives admit  keeping Brennan may be a challenge, considering his
extraordinary talent with the camera and the enormity of his personality and sense of humor.
Giving him his own show just may not be enough.

This just in: SportsRip has obtained an exclusive photo, believed to be the only one of
its kind showing that Brennan actually does work as a videographer. This is Brennan
after a Red Sox game and apparently upset he did not get to partake in the final rendition
for the night of "Sweet Caroline." Nice legs, by the way.

Brennan is to selfies what Mark Zuckerberg is to social media: a pure genius. He is to
selfies what Wade Boggs once was to sex: an addict. He is to singular photos what Tom
Brady is to deflated footballs: an expert.

Nobody does selfies better than Bryan Brennan and you know, that's not a bad thing.

HANSON BROTHERS: THE BEST ON SIBLINGS DAY

"He ain't heavy, he's my brother."

Fat, thin, freckled-faced, or forced to wear the worst-haircuts man has ever seen, pictures of
brothers and sisters adorned Facebook on National Siblings Day. Yes, it seems like every day
has become something national. There's National Puppy Day or National Do-Rag Day. I'm
sure the National hide-your-favorite-waitress-from-Tiger Woods-day is coming sometime
soon.

Admittedly, the siblings day thing is pretty cool. Pictures of brothers, sisters, and brothers
and sisters together is kind of, shall I say, heartwarming, which probably isn't all that cool
to admit, but I don't care.

I wondered to myself who were the greatest siblings in sports, but when I thought about the
names like the Manning's, Dean's, DiMaggio's, Hull's, Sutter's, well, all that came to mind
was vanilla, as in boring. Very boring.

Then, the Hanson brothers, popped in my head for some reason. Oh, they never played in
the NHL or won any awards, but if you love hockey and were coming into your own in
the late 70's, then you know all about them.

The Hanson brothers were the guys who put the goon into the movie, "Slapshot", which
was "Bull Durham", well before "Bull Durham." It was an insanely funny movie about
life in minor-league hockey.

I'm quite certain it would be on the level as "Bull Durham" in terms of popularity if
producers found a way to edit it so that it made sense for a general viewing audience.
However, because of the number of four-letter words and nudity, there was no way
any network would show it repeatedly as they do with  "Bull Durham."

And that's too bad because "Slapshot" is, was, and always be a classic and the Hanson
brothers are a big reason why.

These "brothers" didn't look the part when it came to professional hockey players. They
had long-hair and horned rimmed glasses. Yes, hockey players do wear long hair, but
I can't recall too many of them wearing funny-looking glasses. None actually.

The Hanson brothers, glasses and all, loved to fight and play "old-time hockey", which
meant bar knuckle brawls and vicious body checks. They were the guys who stood up
to authority telling referees to "Shut the F%#k up", because they were trying to listen
to the national anthem with blood oozing down their necks. They were the ones who
were "putting on the foil" as they prepared for nightly donnybrooks against guys like
Ogie Oglethorpe.

The Hanson brothers became cult heroes to those fans in the movie and it flowed right
into mainstream America or at least those who loved hockey. Their shelf life doesn't
seem to have an expiration date.

The Hanson brothers still travel around the country to do their gigs at minor-league
rinks and people still very much identify with them. Those "brothers" were actually
Dave Hanson and Jeff and Steve Carlson, all of whom could skate and skate well.

They are the best of the best when it comes to National Siblings Day, even if they
were just a figment of some whacked producer's imagination. They will always seem real
to many of us, though, because they were just crazy  brothers who just loved to have fun
and hit people real hard.

PATRICK GAMERE: THE 'G-FORCE' IN THE BOSTON MARATHON

If you racked up all the miles Patrick Gamere has covered while chasing the big story or
trying to get the perfect shot with his camera, it'd probably cover the distance from Boston
to Los Angeles and back. He's worked as a videographer for NESN for more than a decade,
capturing emotions and the excellence that seems to occur nightly in the greatest sports town
in the country.

On Monday, April 20, Gamere is set to add 26.2 miles to his wonderful career in sports. But
he won't be lugging a 40-pound camera or chasing the thrill of victory or the agony of defeat.
Gamere is going to run alongside about 30,000 other runners in the Boston Marathon. He got
his bib by raising the required $4,000, but Gamere is going above and beyond in trying to
help others.

Gamere set a goal of raising $13,000 for the Dana-Farber Institute which is a world-renown
center in Boston for cancer treatment and research. He began his training in earnest in mid-
December and endured the worst winter in the city of Boston, battling sub-zero temperatures
and snow drifts as high as the Green Monster.

In nearly 5 months of training, Gamere has logged between 285-300 miles, rising well
before down and running in temperatures that cuts right through you. Not exactly ideal
conditions for  prepping for the mother of all marathons, but Gamere got through it. He did
have a nice three-week break when he escaped the frozen tundra to cover the Red Sox at
their winter home in Fort Myers, and that certainly rejuvenated him.

Focused and committed to his training, Gamere ran in the Marco Island half-marathon in
between covering Red Sox workouts, logging the 13.1 mile course in 2:25.

A former defensive wizard in basketball at Framingham State, Gamere always dreamed
of running the Boston Marathon. His father, a former longtime sportscaster, ran it several
times, and Pat cheered him along the way. Patrick will follow in his footsteps for all 26.2
miles on April 20.

But this race is more than just about completing 26.2 miles for Gamere. NESN, the regional
network Gamere works for, televises the Jimmy Fund telethon every year and he's seen
first hand the heartbreak and tragedy that countless parents suffer when they see a child go
through cancer treatment, and sadly, succumb to it.

Gamere not only wanted to run forward from Hopkinton to Boston, but he wanted to pay
it forward as well. He needs just about $1,000 more to reach his goal of $13,000, which
is a tremendous amount of money for a great, great cause. If you'd like to help Gamere
reach his goal, click on this link and donate.

http://www.rundfmc.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=1115928&supid=300367906

GO, G, GO!

MIKE CARISTA SET FOR COMEBACK

Mike Carista, a former highly-regarded prospect in the Boston Red Sox organization,
announced he's attempting to make a comeback after a 25-year break from the game.
According to sources close to Buster Olney, the stout right-handed pitcher from Saugus, Massachusetts reportedly signed a free-agent deal with the Somerset Patriots of the
Can-Am independently league, which Carista confirmed in an exclusive interview
with SportsRip.

"I am ready," Carista said. "I finally figured out my arm slot again.  Rich Gale, who was
my pitching coach in New Britain, screwed  it up royally. I'm going to kill that S.O.B.
next time I see him. I went from throwing 92 to 85 and that was the beginning of my
downfall."

Carista said that he not only regained his arm slot, but added 12 miles an hour to his fastball,
which he inadvertently discovered while trying to win a stuffed bear for his beautiful wife,
Kate, at the State Fair of North Carolina in December.

"My ball had some serious hair on it," he said. "I just had some pulled pork with picante
sauce along with a corn dog and I was throwing some serious heat. My wife was pissed
because I didn't come close to hitting the target and she didn't get her stuffed animal, but
I felt like Jim Baker at one of those evangelical things: I was re-born! I hit 97 on the
gun. Jeff Plympton, Ken Ryan, or Dave Owen never did that!

Carista said he got serious about a comeback in late December and started to hit the
weight room in addition to working the pits at tractor pulls throughout the state.

"You talk about a workout! Between hauling 150 pound tires and pulling those trucks
through the mud, I got real big, real fast," he said.

When asked if he used any PED's during his comeback, Carista admitted he worked
at a local GNC and may have unknowlingly taken them.

"Hey, I feel for David Ortiz," Carista said. "I can see how he could've taken supplements
that were laced with steroids. Did you ever read the ingredients on the back of those
bottles? Good, lord. It's ridiculous.

Carista went from 240 to 310 pounds in three months, increasing his bench press to a
North Carolina record 660 pounds and deadlifting 700.

"I was in Beast Mode long before Marshall Lynch came along," he added.

The former 3-time all-state pitcher and academic All-American said he also unknowingly
became a BFF with Whitey Bulger, the notorious mob leader from Boston who was on
the run for many years before being captured by the FBI in California.

Carista with Whitey Bulger at Applebee's

"He came to North Carolina before heading west. I met him in the gym at the local
YMCA and I asked him to spot me when I was repping 575 pounds on the bench. We
became fast friends. He'd come over to read my scrap book and watch my videos from
spring training with the Red Sox. He was amazed when I told him that I struck out
Albert Belle, Jim Thome, and Sandy Alomar Jr. in a row when I pitched against them
when they played in Canton-Akron. Whitey said, 'Holy Shit, you made them swim
with the fishes.' "He was a funny guy."

Carista didn't realize he had been paling around with the FBI's 'Most Wanted Man
in America' until he went home to be inducted into the New Britain Red Sox Hall
of Fame several years ago.

"We don't have cable, the Internet, or satellite radio in North Carolina and the last paper
I read was the Boston Globe after I made the all-area team my senior year in high school.
I go to New Britain and I'm watching CNN and I see Whitey gets busted by the FBI.
I couldn't believe it. He was such a nice guy."

Carista has been working with his former manager in Greensboro, Dick Beradino, hoping
to recapture the magic that put him on the cusp of greatness in the Red Sox Organization.

'Fletch' Carista with Dick Beradino before a work out.

"Did you know I was actually better than Curt Schilling in the minor-leagues? Carista
asked. "I had a better record and ERA and you can look it up. We are still great friends
and he's been helping me prepare for my comeback. He even let me see what notes he
took in-between innings during all his starts. Curt also sent me his bloody sock  that
he used against the Yankees for my comeback. How cool is that?", Carista stated.

Carista will be playing on a Somerset team loaded with ex-MLB players like pitcher
Andrew Cardigan and former Red Sox great Rich "El Guapo" Garces. He's hoping
to impress scouts enough to get a major league contract by July 1st.

The signing of Carista has already paid dividends for Somerset. Tickets to "Mike
Carista Beard Night" sold out within minutes of going on sale. Any fan who has
a beard like Mike can bring a friend with a beard and get them in for free.

"This will be the mother of all comebacks and they might just make a reality show.
out of it. Stay tuned."

FIGHT, TIM MURPHY, FIGHT!

Genuine. Nice. Humble. Loyal. Brave. Unselfish. Thoughtful. Respected. If someone has a
few of those characteristics many of us would probably consider them to be a great person.

If a person contains all of those characteristics that someone would be considered to be just
like Tim Murphy.

Murphy served in the Norwalk Police Department for 33 years and helped protect a
community that bordered his hometown of New Canaan, CT. However, when it came to crime,
Norwalk was about as far away from New Canaan as the Golden Gate Bridge. The toughest
part of it, South Norwalk is like a mini-Bronx, riddled with stabbings, shootings, domestic
violence, and drug deals gone bad.

When Murphy, 54, turned in his badge and gun on February 26, he had a pristine and sterling
record and was one of the most respected and well-liked cops on the force. He had risen through
the ranks to be a lieutenant and left without ever being harmed on the job. Murphy and his
lovely wife, Kimberly, had already built a house in Florida and had big plans for retirement.

But just two days after closing the book on his law enforcement career, Murphy got terrible
news. He had stage 4 cancer.

We all know life is not fair, but this is beyond cruel. Tim Murphy is as kind a human
being as there is on this earth. He lived a life of protecting and serving a community, putting
the welfare of others ahead of himself, yet, there was nothing to protect him from cancer,
no one to shield him from a disease that rarely loses.

I heard about Murphy's diagnosis while working at my news station. While casually perusing
the  rundown I saw a story slugged, "Norwalk cop cancer". I clicked open the link to see if I
knew who it was. I had covered the police blotter five days a week for nearly seven months
and I had become acquainted with many of the officers who worked there.

When I read the name, "Tim Murphy", my jaw dropped and my heart sank. I said to myself,
"This can't be true."

Unfortunately, it was.

I've known Murphy for several years and we have many mutual friends in New Canaan.
We often ran into one another at a local health club, trading funny stories about the news
and law enforcement business, or I'd run into him on the "mean streets of New Canaan",
as I often joked.

The police and Norwalk community held a  hockey game to benefit Murphy on Saturday
night with well-over 600 people coming out to show their love and support for Murphy. I
needed to say hello and show mine as well. He is everything good about the human
race and society in general. He has a heart of gold and is as genuine as they come.

Murphy, who loves hockey and is passionate about it, had his uniform from the men's
team he built, presented to him. Trinity Pawling, where Murphy matriculated after
spending his first two years at New Canaan High School, gave him his old hockey
jersey as well.

Like all hockey players, Murphy is tough. He won't give up or give in to cancer and
made it clear of his intention when he spoke to the people who were there to support him:

"With you standing by my side, I will beat this thing."

Knowing Murphy as I do, I have little doubt  he will come out victorious in
his battle with cancer.

Fight, Murphy, Fight. We love you.

DEAN SMITH'S ACT OF KINDNESS

Once as neat and clean as their pristine white home basketball uniforms, UNC's reputation
recently got soiled by an academic scandal that turned the Carolina blue sky over Chapel
Hill into a big, black cloud.

Leave it to Dean Smith to make it a sunny day for Tar Heel Nation once again, even in
death. Yes, the former coaching legend may be a God after all.

Just hours before the school's game against Wisconsin in the NCAA tournament, it
was discovered that Smith willed $200 to every letter winner that played for him
during his 36 years of coaching at UNC. Yes, every single one of them from Tommy
Kearns, a self- made millionaire to self-made billionaire, Michael Jordan received
a $200 check. And every player from every tax-bracket below them got one, too.

This random act of kindness by Smith embodied everything he was all about: thoughtful,
caring, loyal, generous, but most of all, class. His class and style was a big reason why
the University of North Carolina had the reputation it did. No, he didn't build UNC, but
he helped make it a place nearly every high school senior in the country wanted to
attend.

For more than three decades, Smith was the face of the university and the most
powerful man on campus. He was the beacon of the school, the guiding light all Tar
Heels followed and looked up to.

That light dimmed after Smith retired and the scent of big money intoxicated the
athletic program, causing it to make a slew of bad choices and decisions. The
stain caused by an ensuing scandal may take some time to rinse away, but Smith
may have truly started the cleansing process with his act of generosity and kindness.

In a world polluted with greed and people often asking, "what about me?", Smith's
selfless and thoughtful act provides another one of life's lessons he often gave to
his players: It truly is better to give than receive.

Dean Smith has made everyone who attended and graduated from the University of
North Carolina truly proud to be a Tar Heel once again. The skies over Chapel Hill
are Carolina blue today, a ray of sunshine beams through the ivory-clouds from above.

Thank you, Dean Smith. Thank you.